The cicadas are coming. Rising temperatures and thawing soils portend insect explosion.

[elleng]

'Expect the 17-year cicadas in parts of Northern Virginia, Maryland and the District between mid-May and early June.

Are you ready for the arrival of cicadas this spring? The giant, clumsy bugs get caught in people’s hair and make messy splatters on car windshields, and our pets feast on them to the point of getting sick. There are even area residents who are emotionally scarred from past cicada encounters.

This May, cicadas will emerge in tremendous numbers across much of Northern Virginia, Maryland and Washington. The cicadas are from Brood X, and they’ve been living underground for the past 17 years.

(((Periodical cicadas))) are warm-weather insects. They emerge only after the ground temperature reaches the mid-60s, about eight inches below the surface. Cicadas don’t get fooled into emerging during January thaws or during warm spells in early spring. It’s all about the ground temperature.

Cicada numbers across the Washington area should peak during late May, but it could occur in mid-May if we have a warm spring or early June if we have a cold spring. But it’s assured that some time during late spring, we’ll be swarmed by the clumsy buggers.

It’s likely, however, that Prince William County and points south will not have periodical cicadas this year. That region was the epicenter for the 2013 Brood II cicada emergence. The dividing line between Brood II and Brood X runs through D.C.'s southern suburbs. Here’s a link to a map showing the locations of Brood II and X.'>>>

https://www.washingtonpost.com/weather/2021/03/02/cicadas-dc-maryland-virginia-2021/?

[soothsayer]

1. Last time led to a big rat problem cuz they loved to eat em

On the other hand, Arlington county has been so overbuilt since I was a kid (when the cicada explosions were truly huge) it’s still not as bad as it could be.

[LastDemocratInSC]

2. I was telling one of my colleagues how easy it is to make

a peanut butter and cicada sandwich: Apply the peanut butter to the bread in the regular way then open the kitchen window or door and hold the bread outside for a few seconds. The random motion of the swarming creatures and the sticky peanut butter will take care of the rest.