‘They are all over my yard’: Brood X cicadas start to emerge in the region

Brood X cicadas are beginning to emerge in the Miami Valley as temperatures continue to climb this week.

The periodic cicadas appear every 17 years, and billions are expected to emerge this spring and summer in parts of Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Pennsylvania, West Virginia, Tennessee, Virginia, North Carolina, New Jersey and Maryland.

Most people who’ve reported cicada sightings so far are in southern Montgomery County.

Two people in Kettering submitted photos of cicadas near the Hills and Dales neighborhood.

Andy Carter shared a picture of two cicadas on a tire, and Mari Foster submitted photos of the insects clinging to grass on South Patterson Boulevard.

“You have to look closely, but they are all over my yard,” she said.

Foster even saw a squirrel snacking on a cicada.

Barbara Kedziora in Oakwood spotted cicadas walking around quietly on Ridgewood Avenue on Tuesday evening.

Leslie Parsons in West Carrollton shared photos showing several cicada exoskeletons on a tree. These are left behind after cicadas molt into adults.

Vickie Williams caught a cicada climbing up her porch furniture in Springfield.

The insects begin to emerge once the soil temperature hits 64 degrees Fahrenheit, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources.

Cicadas are known for their piercing noises and a group of cicadas can be as loud as 100 decibels.

Though they can be a nuisance, the insects are not harmful to people or toxic to pets. However, animals who eat too many cicadas may get an upset stomach and vomit.

Typically cicadas only live for a few weeks. After emerging and molting, they dry their wings, mate, lay eggs and die.

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