VIDEO - Cicadas Chorus at Forest Park

Wednesday, June 2, 2021
IVY JACOBS PHOTOS - “Brood X” is the largest of the many generations of Cicadas, with nymphs emerging every 17 years. You don’t have to go far to hear them sing, but these bugs are in Forest Park.

“Brood X” is the largest of the many generations of Cicadas, with nymphs emerging every 17 years. They started surfacing as Indiana’s ground temperatures reached 65 degrees in May, beginning the creation of a monstrous ruckus.

IVY JACOBS PHOTOS - “Brood X” is the largest of the many generations of Cicadas, with nymphs emerging every 17 years. You don’t have to go far to hear them sing, but there are thousands of the bugs in Forest Park.

The earsplitting sounds - as loud as a lawnmower, reaching 90-100 decibels - are produced by the male of the species to attract females.

Two vibrating membranes called tymbals sit behind the wing on either side of the male cicada’s abdomen. Female cicadas don’t have sound-producing organs.

IVY JACOBS PHOTOS - There are lots of “Brood X” Cicadas on the trees in Forest Park.

The Cicadas lifespan is usually four to six weeks. They spend their life courting, mating, flying, and, of course, driving people a little bit crazy with their monotonous humming.

Once the adult Cicadas lay their eggs in trees, they start to die off in late June into July.

The eggs hatch four to six weeks later, and the new generation of Brood X begins another 17-year journey burrowing underground until they emerge in 2038.