Dad was out of town all last week, so we were afraid we were going to miss the peak emergence of Periodical Cicadas in our area. Fortunately, the emergence seems to be just starting at Chicago Portage, where we like watch both birds and cicadas.
On Sunday, May 27, we walked along the edges of the woods and on the gravel path that winds through the woods and past ponds that fill an abandoned channel of the Des Plaines River. We found only a few cicadas still emerging from their nymphal skins, with tiny un-inflated wings, like this one:
And we found a few cicadas that had emerged a few hours earlier. Their wings were fully inflated, but they were still white in color:
We mostly found hundreds of shed skins of nymphs, like the ones above, and hundreds of adult cicadas resting on plants:
We also found quite a few cicada wings on the paths through the forest. When we got to the open area close to the water, we found out how the wings got there. We saw an American Robin behaving like a flycatcher, twisting and turning through the air to catch a flying cicada on the wing. We also saw Common Grackles, Starlings, Orioles, and some sort of real flycatcher eating adult cicadas.
We did not hear any cicadas singing. That should start in a few days.
Almost all the shed skins and adult cicadas were at the sunny edges of the woods and in sunny openings between the trees. That means there are still thousands of cicada nymphs–maybe hundreds of thousands–still in their burrows in the deep woods, with its cooler soil. Waiting, for another day or two. Then the REAL emergence should begin at Chicago Portage!
We still have found NO Periodical Cicadas on our block, although we’ve heard reports of them from elsewhere in Oak Park. Maybe we will do a tree-by-tree search tomorrow.
May 28th, 2007 at 6:17 am Friday (5/25) found one lonely cicada while picking up dog poop in our back yard (Kenilworth and Harrision in Oak Park). Same day found one lonely cicada coming out of the ground in the forested area of Morton Arborateum. Am beginning to wonder if this brood will ever wake up!
May 30th, 2007 at 7:21 am Brookfield is buzzing! We are just infested with them. Family is reporting no cicadas in Cicero, Stickney, Orland Park, Oregon, IL - few have emerged near Starved Rock. Congress Park & Raymond Avenue has the biggest emergence I’ve seen!
June 1st, 2007 at 8:47 am I haven’t seen or heard any Periodical Cicadas near Evergreen Park, IL. I really thought I would have by now. I did go to my doctor’s office on Tuesday 5/29 in Palos Heights on College Drive west of Ridgeland Avenue, and heard them buzzing away. I asked a friend who lives in Palos Heights if she has seen any Cicadas, but she says that it seems they are only in the forest preserve areas around her.
June 21st, 2007 at 6:31 am I for one and happy o see no cicadas (in Oak Park). I have a bit of bug-o-phobia (probably from watching some Hitchock movie as a kid) but I remember last time 17 years ago, I was freakin’ out! I hope they’re not just biding their time. That said, two blocks over I can hear them in the trees. Why are cicadas presenting in some areas but not others?
August 13th, 2009 at 12:34 pm I think I saW THIS BUG IN MY YARD IN rENSSELAER ny IS THAT POSSIBLE!!!!
August 16th, 2009 at 7:42 am Hi, Dawn, This spring Periodical Cicadas were emerging in New York state and New Jersey. Read about it here: http://www.cicadamania.com/cicadas/2009/05/23/brood-ii-emerging-in-new-jersey-and-new-york/ However, Periodical Cicadas are usually finished emerging by the end of June. More likely this time of year are Annual Cicadas, like this: http://www.cicadamania.com/cicadas/2009/07/03/time-for-the-yearly-tibicen-post/ There are some other species, though. You can check this page for a match: http://insects.ummz.lsa.umich.edu/fauna/michigan_cicadas/michigan/Index.html Good luck! Eric
September 10th, 2009 at 4:48 pm I found one on my deck It was pretty cool
September 10th, 2009 at 4:49 pm Do you Know what they eat?
September 13th, 2009 at 5:04 am Cicadas do most of their feeding as nymphs underground, sucking slightly sweet sap from roots while they are growing up. Sometimes the adults will suck some sap using their long, pointed “beaks,” but that may be more for water than for food.