MISSOURI, USA — Missouri and Illinois residents have either been lovers or haters of nature's big show: the emergence of billions of cicadas throughout the state.
The insects have been seen flying around and feeding on trees significantly more in the last few days, with some saying they can barely walk outside without slamming into the bugs.
Is this the most cicadas Missouri and southern Illinois will see, or are there more in store? We dug into the facts to VERIFY.
The question
Is Missouri and southern Illinois' periodical cicada brood XIX at its peak emergence?
Our sources
- Katie Dana, entomologist with the Illinois Natural History Survey
- Robbie Doerhoff, forest entomologist for the Missouri Department of Conservation
The answer
Yes, brood XIX is in its full emergence, meaning cicadas' song in Missouri and southern Illinois will stay loud for weeks until it begins to grow quieter and quieter as July nears.
What we found
Our expert entomologists said the region from southern Illinois to southern Missouri is in full emergence. That means most of the cicadas have come out of the ground at this point.
The region is seeing the most cicadas that will be alive above ground right now, and it will stay that way for weeks. The life span of cicadas once they are above ground is between three and six weeks.
That also means this will be the loudest their singing/mating calls will get as well.
The emergence is expected to be over by the end of June, but as soon as the 13-year cicada brood is gone, the area will see the emergence of its annual cicadas. Those will hang around until October.
We can VERIFY: Yes, this is the most cicadas the Missouri and southern Illinois region will see during this periodical emergence.
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