For the first time in more than 200 years, two different groups of periodic cicadas will emerge at the same time. We have the latest buzz and updates.
Tying together memories, tidbits (blue-eyed freaks) and fishing from this emergence of periodical cicadas and the one in in 2007.
Several cicadas perched on foliage in Aurora, Ill. Wednesday afternoon, May 22, 2024.
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Brian Ernst/Sun-Times
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A large cicada brood emerges Wednesday around a tree in Western Springs.
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Jim Vondruska/For the Sun-Times
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A number of cicadas congregate on the corner of a fence Wednesday in Aurora.
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Brian Ernst/Sun-Times
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Several shells and hatched cicadas can be seen on a tree Wednesday in Aurora.
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Brian Ernst/Sun-Times
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The signature red eyes of a cicada stand out from the shadow of a tree Wednesday in Aurora.
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Brian Ernst/Sun-Times
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Several shells and hatched cicadas can be seen on a tree Wednesday in Aurora.
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Brian Ernst/Sun-Times
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A large cicada brood emerges Wednesday around a tree in Western Springs.
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Jim Vondruska/For the Sun-Times
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A large cicada brood emerges Wednesday around a tree in Western Springs.
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Jim Vondruska/For the Sun-Times
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A cicada lands on a person Wednesday in Western Springs.
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Jim Vondruska/For the Sun-Times
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A large cicada brood emerges Wednesday around a tree in Western Springs.
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Jim Vondruska/For the Sun-Times
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A large cicada brood emerges Wednesday around a tree in Western Springs.
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Jim Vondruska/For the Sun-Times
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This cicada is part of a large brood that emerged around a tree Wednesday in Western Springs.
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Jim Vondruska/For the Sun-Times
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A cicada is seen molting during an emergence tour in Skokie.
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Matt Prusak
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Matt Prusak with an annual cicada in Schererville, Indiana, in 2022.
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Provided
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One of the hundreds of cicadas Matt Prusak saw on a cicada emergence tour in Skokie.
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Krist Schroeder found a blue-eyed cicada May 20, 2024 at the St. James Farm Forest Preserve in Warrenville.
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Forest Preserve District of DuPage County
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William Marx, 9, found a blue-eyed cicada May 19, 2024 in Beverly on the Far South Side.
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Courtesy of Phil and Tricia Marx
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Brood XIX cicadas walk over Teri Guill’s hand in St. Louis earlier in May.
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Another St. Louis cicada spotted by Terry Guill.
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Some cicadas Teri Guill saw in St. Louis.
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Teri Guill of Carrollton, Texas, is a lifelong lover of nature and has taken two solo trips to admire the insects up close. For her next trek, she will share the experience with her 13-year-old niece.
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Kat McHenry and Maddy McKee let some new cicada friends walk on their hands at Hickory Creek Preserve.
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“We think cicadas are harmless and adorable little critters,” Kat McHenry said of the insects.
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Maddy McKee is an aspiring entomologist who wanted to visit Illinois to see this year’s historic cicada emergence.
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Maddy McKee reaches for a cicada in a tree at Hickory Creek Preserve.
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Kat McHenry and Maddy McKee traveled from California to Chicago to see cicadas.
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Kat McHenry and Maddy McKee admire the cicadas at Morton Arboretum.
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Maxim André Goddard, center, plans to come to the Chicago area with his partner Anna and daughter Alexandria to see the 17-year cicadas during their historic emergence.
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The cicada-infused Malört shots at Noon Whistle Brewing in Lombard sell for $5 each.
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Joey Giardiniera
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Sign of the times: A 17-year cicada.
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Vickie O’Malley
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Lulu Miller
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Rebecca Fyffe
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What to expect
Two types of periodical cicadas will come above ground at the same time in Illinois this summer. One brood, or breeding group, emerges every 13 years, and the other comes every 17 years.
For the first time in more than 200 years, two different groups of periodic cicadas will emerge at the same time. Here is everything you need to know about the natural phenomenon, along with a map.
Experts at the Morton Arboretum say it’s important to protect any trees planted in the past three years with fine mesh netting.
As part of the group’s “Cicada Parade-A” initiative, art sculptures of the creatures are popping in the city.
Column with a mishmash of the wild world—cicada wonders, a leucistic catfish, too many rabbits, hoping for coyotes and bucks in velvet spotted while frog monitoring—and Malört.
‘Like any self-respecting American, I’m going to deep fry them in a little beer batter. Anything’s good in garlic butter, right?’ said Geoff Marshall, a cicada fan who cooked up the insects for his friends.
Like frightened suburbanites, cicadas don’t get to the city as much as they should. So one family went in search of them.
From ‘Arachnophobia’’ to ‘The Fly,’ here are our favorite films starring ants, spiders and other creepy-crawlies.
Noon Whistle Brewing’s timely offering is made with the real insects.
Sensory walks, a campfire feast and learning sessions with scientists are just some of the ways Illinoisans and out-of-towners alike can celebrate the historic double emergence of the 13-year and 17-year cicadas.
With trillions of red-eyed bugs here for a few weeks, furiously mating and laying the groundwork for the next generation, you have to wonder what humans are here for.
The neighborhoods where people aren’t seeing many cicadas remind us many insect species are in decline: 40% of insect species are threatened by extinction. Nature-based solutions are needed to nurture native insects and keep our ecosystem in balance.
Brian Athern caught a bluegill that was chasing cicadas while he and Ricardo Rodriguez fished for smallmouth bass on a southwest suburban stream.
The buzzing coming from the cicadas is expected to get louder as more insects emerge from the ground.
For tourists, Illinois is the place to be for the historic cicada emergence. The 17-year brood in the state’s northern half and the 13-year brood in the southern part are set to converge near Springfield.
The extremely rare bugs were found this week in Beverly, Orland Park and Warrenville. One was donated to the Field Museum.
A science reporter shares a rare moment of awe surrounded by strangers gathered to experience the natural phenomenon that occurs every 221 years.
Se han visto cigarras periódicas de Lisle a Morgan Park. La última vez que las cigarras periódicas se dejaron ver en el norte de Illinois, el iPhone acababa de salir a la venta.
Periodical cicadas have been spotted from Lisle to Morgan Park. The last time the periodical cicadas were visible in northern Illinois, the iPhone was just being brought to market.
“They’re either really fascinated by cicadas or they want to terrorize someone,” says Bent Fork Bakery owner Liz Bearwald of the customers who’ve been purchasing the treats.
Ready or not, trillions of the five-eyed beasties are about to descend — or rather, emerge — upon Illinois.
The cicadas are coming, and these glorious insects fill me with wonder.
“Things people don’t have to prep for and don’t think are a big deal are real-life issues for us,” said Laura Florek, a Northbrook mom of two young adults with autism.