Buzz By Geomancing Watch

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It's cicada time along the east coast of the US, or will be soon! They're such an interesting insect species. The majority of their life cycle is living underground as grubs, feeding off the nutrients from tree roots. Then every seventeen years, they move above ground, climb to somewhere elevated, and metamorphose into their winged form for their last couple of weeks of life. As adults, they fly clumsily around, call out with more volume than a rock concert and search for a mate. They have no stingers, no defense mechanisms whatsoever other than being so numerous that there's too many for predators to eat. Once mated, they lay their eggs in tree bark and other rough surfaces, then fall to the ground and die, their purpose completed. Their bodies are a massive burst of nutrients into the environment for animals and plants alike. Eventually the eggs hatch, the newly-hatched grubs fall to the ground and burrow under, not to emerge for another seventeen years. It's a remarkable evolutionary trait and life cycle, unlike anything else known in the animal world.



So if you're in the eastern coastal states that are soon to be experiencing the second-largest brood of seventeen-year cicadas, enjoy a rare experience. They might be big and ugly, but they're totally harmless and one of the clumsiest fliers in the world. I suggest earplugs if you're outside any length of time, though.

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Published : Apr 20, 2013