Cicadas are expected to return to the United States this year, but their numbers are not expected to be as overwhelming as before. Spring 2024when multiple chicks appeared at the same time.
Brood XIV is the second largest periodical group. cicadaUniversity of Connecticut researchers say they are the only group of 17-year-old cicadas to emerge this spring that is known for their noisy mass emergence from the ground.
Here’s what we know about the 2025 Cicada.
When will the cicadas return?
Cicadas spend most of their lives underground, emerging after a certain number of years when the soil reaches 64 degrees. Brood XIV appears every 17 years.
The exact time in 2025 is unknown, but they typically appear in May and last until June. During those weeks, the cicadas mature, mate, lay eggs, and then die, after which their offspring begin a new cycle.
climate change It also affects the timing of insect arrival. Last year, cicadas began arriving in Georgia nearly two weeks earlier than expected.
Carolyn Custer/Associated Press
Where do Blued XIV cicadas emerge?
This group, known as the “Great Eastern Brood,” historically lived in northern Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee, southern Indiana and Ohio, North Carolina, Virginia, West Virginia, Maryland, and Pennsylvania. , found in some areas of New Jersey. New York and Massachusetts.
However, UConn researchers note that the Brood XIV cicada population is declining on Long Island and its distribution is changing in southwestern Ohio and southeastern Indiana. Researchers said they will map and study cicada emergence in 2025 to address gaps in knowledge about patterns.
How many cicadas will there be in 2025?
Estimating the population size of any insect is difficult, and cicadas are no exception.
John Cooley, a cicada expert at the University of California, predicts that by 2024 there will be hundreds of trillions or even quadrillions of cicadas, with two giant cicadas expected to emerge at the same time. .
Although there will be fewer cicadas this spring, more than 1 trillion cicadas could emerge. This number may sound extreme, but not all cicadas are in the same place at the same time.
