Cicada Summer 2020!
2020 has certainly been one for the history books, and we're only halfway through the year! As we roll into Summer, the news just keeps getting more strange.
We heard from the folks over at Cicada Mania that the summer of 2020 is going to bring a sudden uprising of cicada insect broods to parts of North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia! If you've lived through a "cicada invasion" before, you'll know what these critters are like, and you know you're in for a bizarre summer. And if you've never experienced the emergence of a cicada brood before, read on and get prepared!
Our art team here at the ADG store thinks the cicadas are somewhat endearing (if a little freaky, silly and annoying). Not only do we keep tabs on cicada movements, but we also created a fun, vintage art collection to commemorate the noisy buggers. This collection also celebrates and documents our collective efforts to survive the inevitable cicada swarm!
After you've survived the coming horde, you'll have earned some pretty significant bragging rights, and we have the funky, groovy, stylish "cicada swag" poster art to help you let the world know you survived the Cicada-clypse!
A Bug Like No Other - Ten Fun Facts About Cicadas
Cicadas are funny-looking winged insects that spend most of their life underground. Once they reach a certain point in their adulthood, they emerge above ground, fly around a lot, emit their shrill mating call, mate, fly around some more, lay a bunch of eggs, and then die.
The life cycle of a cicada reminds us of 1990s boy bands. Not unlike boy bands, these bugs make a lot of ruckus for a short while, everyone gets excited about them, and then they vanish!
And the fascinating life cycle of the cicada is just the beginning of what makes these bugs unique. Here are ten fun facts about cicada bugs that will get you excited to see (and hear) one in real life!
1). Cicadae are born into tree bark, but shortly after hatching from their eggs, they fall down to the ground, burrow into the soil, and spend most of their life digging around feeding on plant roots.
2). Only the male cicada bug makes the loud, shrill call associated with these funny-lookin' critters. And yep, you guessed it, their loud noises (like so many other, young, adolescent male species), are definitely mating calls!
3). Though cicadas don't even really look like they're from Planet Earth (we think they look kind of like alien invaders!), we did do our research and, yes, cicadas are insects. They come from the "Hemiptera" bug family.
4). Brood cicadas usually have red-orange eyes that are oddly situated on the sides of the cicada's head. They kind of look like a hammerhead shark's eyes! Creepy! We've also seen cicadas with blue, white, and grayish eyes.
5). Female cicadas have been known to be attracted to the sound of motors, so if you get swarmed by cicada bugs while trying to mow the grass, that's why!
6). Cicadas can live underground for several years, sometimes well over a decade. However, they only spend a few adult weeks above ground before their life cycle ends.
7). Did you know that cicadas are actually helpful for your yard? Yep, cicadas dig tunnels through the soil, allowing for natural aeration to occur. Plus, when they return to the ground after mating, they die, and their bodies put nitrogen back into the soil.
8). Cicadas have lots of natural predators. They don't know it yet, but raccoons, mice, birds, opossums, and other critters are in for some delicious, cicada dinners this summer!
9). The cicada bug is the loudest insect in the world, with its shrill song being recorded at over 100 decibels!
10). Individual cicadas have the remarkable ability of being able to tell when an entire brood is emerging from the ground. That's how millions of these insects come soaring out of the ground at the same time.
Summer 2020 - Multiple Cicada Broods Converge on the U.S.!
There have been several reports lately that a few cicada broods will converge this summer, creating a massive cicada presence across much of the United States. According to Cicada Mania, much of the U.S. will get front row seats to veritable clouds of cicada bugs.
Here's what we know so far:
- Brood V stragglers are going to emerge in Ohio, West Virginia, and Pennsylvania. These Brood V remnants are showing up four years later than predicted.
- Brood IX is in the process of emerging in North Carolina, Virginia, and West Virginia. This brood is one year early!
- Brood X is also early, and this brood is emerging in Tennessee and Washington, D.C.
- Brood XIX is four years early, and this brood will be spotted this summer in virtually every state in the Southeast and Midwest, from Chicago, Illinois to Savannah, Georgia!
We're now calling it the "Cicada Summer 2020" and not without good reason. If you live east of the Mississippi River and south of the 45th Parallel, you'll likely see and hear a considerable number of cicadas this summer!
Celebrating the Swarm with Vintage Poster Art
To celebrate Cicada Summer 2020, our team at our Nashville art studio created several original poster designs of the cicada invasion. These illustrations take inspiration from 1950's horror movie poster art, 1990's arcade video game art, comic book art, 1970s poster art, and more.
After living through yet another curveball that 2020 has in store for us, you'll want to celebrate surviving the Cicada-clypse with swanky, silly, and unique art designs. You can order your favorite insect-inspired design as a canvas banner, premium gallery wrapped canvas, art print, postcard, notecard, or framed postcard. Hang your vintage art with pride and tell your friends that you survived the great cicada invasion of 2020!
Once we get through the cicadas, what do you think 2020 has in store for us next? My money is on flying pigs!
Until next time,
-Ren Brabenec
Anderson Design Group Writing Staff
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