Expect a boom of cicadas this spring as two broods co-emerge for the first time since 1803.
Periodical cicadas are insects with some of the longest lifecycles of any insect, yet live a majority of their immature life underground. When they reach adulthood they surface from the ground which occurs every 13 years or every 17 years depending on the species. While different species of cicadas can have the same life cycle they can emerge in different years. When different species of periodical cicadas with the same lifestyle emerge during the same year it is called a brood. Broods are designated by Roman numerals and can be described as groupings of different species of periodical cicadas that emerge from the ground at adulthood on a common timeline. There are twelve broods of 17-year cicadas and three broods of 13-year cicadas.
While it is not uncommon for a 17-year brood and a 13-year brood to emerge at the same time, this often occurs in different geographic regions. A less common event is a 13-year brood and a 17 year brood emerging a the same time in adjacent geographic locations and even more rare (occurring once ever 221 years) is two specific 13-year and 17-year broods emerging at the same time.
In 2024, 13-year Brood XIX and 17-year Brood XIII will co-emerge for the first time since 1803. While they do not greatly overlap in the same geographic region there are some areas in northern to central Illinois which may see both broods of cicadas. Not only is this the first year in over 200 years in which these two broods emerged at the same time, it is the first time since 2015 that there was a co-emergence of a 13 year and 17 year brood and the first time in 25 years that adjacent 13 year and 17 year broods will appear in the same year.
Brood XIX is the largest of all periodical cicada broods and is also known as the Great Southern Brood. The geographic reach of these cicadas is mainly in the Midwest and along the east coast with reports of them in as north as Maryland all the way down to Georgia as well as across Iowa and throughout Oklahoma. While this brood is mostly found in the south there have been records of them as north as Illinois. Brood XIII is a smaller, 17-year brood consisting of three species of periodical cicadas. Geographically, this brood is located primarily throughout Michigan, Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio.
What to Expect?
Those in the south and some of the east can expect to see cicadas littering the ground come spring time. Cicadas may become a nuisance for those in these states do to the loud, high-pitched buzzing noise they make as a mating call, but they are nothing more than this. Cicadas are harmless to plants and humans as they do not bite or sting nor are they poisonous or toxic. They feed on tree sap and therefore do not do damage to crops or flowers. Cicadas actually serve as helpful in some areas as they are good for soil once they decompose and provide a food source for birds. Periodical cicadas have a short adult life cycle meaning that their mating process only lasts about six weeks before the adult cicadas die off and the next generation of cicadas returns underground for another 17 or 13 years.
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