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Old 03-05-2011, 01:04 PM
 
Location: Franklin, TN
3,760 posts, read 7,057,671 times
Reputation: 2366

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OK, just read that Cicadas are NOT locusts. I think I saw an episode on Little House on the Prairie about locusts. Almost as freaky as The Birds by Hitchcock. ANYWAY, I moved here the weekend of the flood. Then we had a long hot summer. The white Christmas was nice! But now, seriously, bugs??? Anyone live through them before? How long do they last? Will they murder my crape myrtle????
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Old 03-05-2011, 01:08 PM
 
Location: Murfreesboro, TN
3,528 posts, read 8,589,355 times
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They weren't that bad at all. People exaggerate. I was ready for the "invasion" last time and it wasn't anywhere near what people made it out to be. So, relax!
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Old 03-05-2011, 01:24 PM
 
Location: Franklin, TN
6,662 posts, read 13,269,773 times
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Spring through summer. While there are some cicadas every year, every 13 years in the Southeast, a "brood" emerges that just completely overwhelms everything. We are talking millions and millions of bugs. They are a nuisance. They are big, ugly, and loud. Luckily they are completely harmless to humans (no aggression, biting, stinging).

You will find skins everywhere in the spring, and dead adults by late summer. In between, you will hear the noise... They really don't last all that long...but it sure is annoying when a big brood emerges.



Btw, where do you come from that didn't have cicadas?
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Old 03-05-2011, 01:27 PM
 
Location: Brentwood, Tennessee
49,932 posts, read 59,599,006 times
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Just hope the Japanese beetles don't come this year. They LOVE crape myrtles and magnolias.
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Old 03-05-2011, 01:30 PM
 
Location: Franklin, TN
6,662 posts, read 13,269,773 times
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Quote:
Originally Posted by Wmsn4Life View Post
Just hope the Japanese beetles don't come this year. They LOVE crape myrtles and magnolias.
Yes, Japanese beetles (lil bastards) are far more destructive to your garden. Cicadas are mainly just a mess...they are worse on trees (I don't believe they kill any trees, but sometimes they kill the new growth on them when they plant their eggs).
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Old 03-05-2011, 11:52 PM
 
1,087 posts, read 3,499,870 times
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I've been in TN for over 25 years and I only recall one major cicada invasion durinng that time. It was in the 90s. They were everywhere. I remember one day my BF and I were walking through Hickory Hollow Mall and there was a cicada riding on his shoulder, like it was enjoying the scenery. At first it was a little freaky having them flying into me all the time, but after a while I got used to it. I recall one other kind of big invasion a few years later, but really not that bad. I see them every year, but most of the time I don't see any more cicadas than I do any other bug.

I'll take the cicadas over the ticks we have out here in the rural area where I live, any day! We had a very wet winter, so it's looking to be another bad tick season.
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Old 03-06-2011, 08:51 AM
 
Location: Little Rock, Ar
227 posts, read 726,125 times
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isn't it funny how where you're from can change how you view things... In the south of France cicadas are everywhere in the hot dry summer and you can buy pottery, plant holders, and even yummy sweets that are shaped like them. The hotter and dryer it is, the more you get cicadas. I actually like them because it reminds me of my time in south of France but I can see how they can be annoying as well
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Old 03-06-2011, 10:38 AM
 
Location: Nashville
597 posts, read 2,101,444 times
Reputation: 668
All I can say about the cicadas. Just buy the t-shirt and remember, it won't happen again for 13 more years.

You won't forget this. And remember, they don't bite, they don't sting. If you haven't seen this before, don't be near me; I'll post your reactions on YouTube. Ha!
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Old 03-06-2011, 11:39 AM
 
Location: Franklin, TN
6,662 posts, read 13,269,773 times
Reputation: 7612
Oh, another note...there is a very large wasp-like insect that is a predator to cicadas called the cicada killer wasp (brilliant, right??).

Eastern cicada killer - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Due to their size, they look like a scarier version of a hornet, but they are non-aggressive, and rarely sting (the males don't even possess stingers) unless you try to grab one for some reason. They might appear to be aggressive/confrontational, but it's usually just a male looking for a mate. Even if you swat at them, they'll usually just fly away. Don't kill them, though...they help keep the cicada population (more) under control.
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Old 03-06-2011, 01:54 PM
 
1,398 posts, read 2,483,646 times
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Don't mean to sound harsh to anyone... but I am getting tired of these worrisome emails about the heat, the floods, the bugs. Um, toughen up people! It ain't going to kill you. Overall, the positives of this area far outweigh the negatives. My advice: Don't buy a house in a floodplain; Keep yourselves hydrated with cool fluids; Keep a small bottle of bug reprellent in your pocket/purse.

Once again, not to diminish the problems that people have experienced in the flood last year, but it was a so-called 1000-year flood. It was literally non-stop rain for three days. Not since Noah, and hopefully not again for at least as long.
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