Brood X Cicadas Are Back in Delaware
This post was originally written by WJBR Digital Production Intern, Joy Paganucci. Paganucci is a senior Media Communications Honors student at the University of Delaware from New York, NY. Along with being a Digital Content Intern for WJBR, Paganucci also works as Executive Producer for Real Talk, a show on the UD Student Television Network and as an Oral Communications Consultant in the UD Writing Center.
If you’re in northern Delaware, there’s a big chance you have been hearing a buzzing sound this Summer… that is the sound of the cicadas. The latest group of periodical cicadas is called Brood X. Occurring only every 17 years, huge numbers of mature cicada nymphs synchronously emerge for a brief adult stage. Walter Dych, a junior linguistics major at the University of Delaware, hears the cicadas on a regular basis. “They are super loud” said Dych. “Living in New Castle County, I can hear them every night from my bedroom.”
The sounds you hear from periodical cicadas are usually a mating call. Their singing can also be used as a way to communicate, reproduce, and defend themselves. “There are other broods in our area that occasionally may be seen. But Brood X is by far the largest and all-encompassing of the county,” said David Owens, a University of Delaware Cooperative Extension entomology specialist. “They can be so abundant the shed skins form piles under trees.” However, there is no reason to worry about the insects, even if you’re scared of bugs. Cicadas aren’t harmful to people, kids or pets.
According to The National Wildlife Federation, there are many benefits to the emergence of Brood X. There will be growth and strength in creatures who eat them, plants, soil, and water infiltration. According to nwf.org, “They prune mature trees, aerate the soil, and once they die, their bodies serve as an important source of nitrogen for growing trees.” Usually lasting around four to six weeks after making their appearance, the cicadas shouldn’t be around for too much longer.