Where is the Huge Cicada Brood X Michigan Expected in 2021?
Here's where the cicadas are and what we're missing.
Don't misunderstand the title. The Brood X has emerged this summer. However, Michigan is seeing very little of these bizarre little creatures. After seeing videos pop up on TikTok and stories from publications like USA Today we brought you the story of cicadas invading Michigan. The predictions were close, but this isn't horse shoes. While Michigan is only seeing the emergence of cicadas in 2 or 3 Southern counties, Indiana and Ohio are all the buzz. As you can see in the map below from the USDA Forest Service, the areas in yellow are experiencing the Brood X. Basically, the entire state of Indiana, much of Central and Western Ohio and some of Pennsylvania are walking outside to the loud collaborative hum of bugs while hearing the crunch of their shells below their feet.
For those of us lucky enough to have never experienced cicada season, here are a couple of videos to give you an idea of what you're missing. This first video shows cicadas eating plants. It also shows the weird empty shell they leave behind...everywhere.
The noise can be intense. The 1 thing I remember the most about living in Cincinnati during the cicada invasion of 2004 is how I couldn't hear myself think. It's like a freight train is going by non-stop for a couple of months. It difficult to capture just how loud it can be on video but this one gives you a decent idea below.
If you find these annoying little bugs fascinating you will love the video below from the BBC tracking their life cycle.