Get jiggy wit' it

Or so these cicadas would say.....

Coming soon: Brood XIII. It sounds like a bad horror movie. But it's actually the name of the billions of cicadas expected to emerge this month in parts of the Midwest after spending 17 years underground.

The red-eyed, shrimp-sized, flying insects don't bite or sting. But they are known for mating calls that produce a din that can overpower ringing telephones, lawn mowers and power tools.

Brood XIII is expected across northern Illinois, and in parts of Iowa, Wisconsin, Michigan and Indiana. Cicadas live only about 30 days as adults, and their main goal is mating.

They don't harm humans, although they are clumsy and might fly into people. Birds, squirrels and pets, especially dogs, love to eat them, and they are high in protein.

17 years underground? 17? SEVENTEEN????
That's amazing. Just to think about it. And the article goes on to detail how these cicadas will die in 30 days, once they emerge. 17 years as a nymph and then go out in a blaze of "glory". heh. Yes glory, since their primary goal is to mate.

But my god, I'd bloody glad I don't see anything like that in Singapore..... I like the snakes, I like the lizards, but I am a horrible, screamy, shrieky, jumpy woman when it comes to insects and bugs. Especially spiders. Oh gods. And caterpillars. Oh GODS.

Before I get too grossed out, I found an interesting post about these Periodical Cicadas. Yeah, that's their official name. And apparently, they really do emerge every 17 years. How curious is that?

Periodical cicadas are found only in the United States east of the Great Plains. The 17-year cicadas are found mainly in the northern, eastern, and western part of their range. The 13-year cicadas predominate in the South. Within the 17-year cicadas there are 12 year classes or broods.

The scariest bit? The largest brood till date emerged in 1987 and spanned 15 states. States! Not cities, not towns, not regions. States. Shit, that's frickin' huge.


I'm actually quite thankful I live in Singapore, right now. Heh.