# 17 year cicadas



## cnycharles (Jun 3, 2013)

yesterday an orchid-hunting friend and I went looking for flowering plants of isotria medeloides in southern ny state. I went up on the hill first to see if there were any plants in flower (he is older and has asthma). we saw right by the car, a cicada that had crawled up a grass stem and we took a few pictures. after I got up about 3/4 of the way up the hill I started hearing this unusual, whirring-type noise. I realized that it must have been the cicadas up in the trees! it sounded much like the sound a whiffle ball would make tied to a string, and spun around quickly through the air. it didn't sound anything like the usual cicadas you hear in late summer. I recorded the sound on my phone's voice memo program as it was quite loud, and took a few pictures. in some spots trees and leaves were covered with empty cases and insects hanging underneath the leaves or on the sides of trees and branches. they were hanging out mostly around short oak trees, and you would hear them in pockets through the woods. when driving back down through southern ny and into northern nj, there was one section of the state thruway 287 and I-78 where they join where I could clearly hear them in the trees on both sides of the four-lane highway, while I was driving with the windows down in my car, which also happens to have a loud exhaust right now. so, they were quite loud in places! once moving further west, I didn't hear them. it was quite hot where I did hear them, and not as hot where I didn't, and you didn't hear them through pine woods

I didn't see any isotria, but did find some all-green sundew and a pink ladyslipper with a full seed pod

the video below is 128 mb, and has the video and sound of the cicadas while I was walking back down to the car

http://www.cnyos.org/exdisp/cicadavideo6-2-13full.mov






















more later

very cool!


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## SlipperFan (Jun 3, 2013)

They are all over, aren't they!


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## chris20 (Jun 3, 2013)

I think it's going to be a loud summer.


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## goods (Jun 3, 2013)

Apparently, they're rather tasty on the grill  We don't get the periodical cicadas down here, but we have the regular species year-round.


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## NYEric (Jun 4, 2013)

Cool! I haven't seen any yet but I will look for some next weekend. Thanks for sharing.


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## Clark (Jun 5, 2013)

Nice pics!

We were at 287 & 78 on Sunday, about 3:00. Did not get the treatment you did.
In fact, yet to see or hear one of these bugs.


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## cnycharles (Jun 5, 2013)

I'm surprised... I heard them again in same area yesterday afternoon, around 3:30 4 pm on my way up to Fairfield (78E to 287N) from Clinton direction
This area haven't seen or heard any, or in my sister's neighborhood around west orange


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## NYEric (Jun 6, 2013)

A co-worker of mine said they are all over her place on Staten Island. There was some kind of survey map online and they appeared to be showing up the South and east but not NW!


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## couscous74 (Jun 7, 2013)

I think they can be ground up for fertilizer, right? :evil:


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## likespaphs (Jun 11, 2013)

i thought they were up here in the Boston area too, but i guess i'm wrong


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## Clark (Jun 16, 2013)

We drove past that famous 78 & 287 intersection last Sunday(again).
Got the full monty this time around.

Crazy Sounds!
Insane amount of bugs!!!


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## Ray (Jun 16, 2013)

We have not seen (or heard) a single one here in my part of Bucks County PA, and then I remembered they need to dig their way out of the soil.

We don't have any soil. Just shale.


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## cnycharles (Jun 17, 2013)

Clark said:


> We drove past that famous 78 & 287 intersection last Sunday(again).
> Got the full monty this time around.
> 
> Crazy Sounds!
> Insane amount of bugs!!!



Glad you were finally able to catch up with them


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