Maryland will see a wave of cicadas in 2025. Here's when the bugs could re-emerge
Cicadas will return to Maryland in 2025 as the second-largest brood is expected to emerge after 17 years underground.
The return of Brood XIV, of the Great(er) Eastern Brood, will bring trillions of the chittering bugs to 13 states in the eastern U.S.
Most Marylanders remember when the bold buzzing sound of cicadas filled our neighborhoods in 2021.
"Yeah. You know, we said we weren't gonna see them for another 17 years. Right? But oh, my gosh! Here they are again. This is brood 14 coming in," Dr. Michael Raupp, Professor Emeritus at the University of Maryland, said.
What are cicadas?
There are more than 3,000 species of cicadas, which are often between 2 to 5 centimeters with translucent wings, according to the Britannica encyclopedia.
Despite their off-putting look and sometimes alarming flying style, cicadas do not bite or sting.
They do, however, make a distinct sound often described as a buzzing or screeching.
According to Britannica, male cicadas produce the noise by vibrating their membranes. They can make three different sounds that change based on the environment, disturbances or if they are looking for a mate.
Some female cicadas can make a clicking noise with their wings.
When will cicadas come out in Maryland?
Brood XIV is expected to emerge from the ground during spring 2025, though the timing is unclear.
According to the University of Connecticut, cicadas come out once the temperature of the soil reaches about 64 degrees at a depth of 7 to 8 inches.
This means that cicadas can return at different times depending on the climate of a certain location or state.
According to CBS News, the timing of a cicada brood emergence can be impacted by climate change.
In 2024, some parts of Maryland saw cicadas emerge in mid-May.
"These cicadas that we may see in Maryland, maybe, are what we call stragglers. These are cicadas that emerge a few years off-cycle. So, they missed the big party back in 2021. But they may actually appear this year in Maryland, in isolated locations, maybe around Hancock, Maryland, and also in other places," Dr. Raubb explained.
The bugs usually die off by June.
Brood XIV is present in Maryland, Virginia, West Virginia, parts of Pennsylvania, New Jersey, New York and Massachusetts, as well as in Georgia, Kentucky, Tennessee, and southern Indiana and Ohio.
How long do cicadas live?
There are about 500 cicada species around the world that have long life cycles, earning them the moniker Periodical Cicadas, according to Britannica.
Research from the University of Connecticut shows, there are seven species of periodical cicadas in eastern North America. Four of them have 13-year life cycles and another three species have 17-year life cycles.
Periodical cicadas spend most of their lifecycle underground, and once they emerge, they often only live for a few weeks: Just enough time for them to mate and lay eggs.
Newly hatched baby cicadas, called nymphs, burrow into the ground for about 12 to 16 years and re-emerge en masse for their final molt as the cycle continues.
What to look out for?
Whether you are hoping for them or wishing them away, Dr. Raubb says there are things you can look out for to see if these fashionably late creatures are making their way through the soil where you live.
"If you're going to see cicadas, one of the first things you'll begin to see is small dime-shaped holes in your yard somewhere. You may also see activity by foxes and squirrels and skunks, and raccoons excavating the soil," Dr. Raubb explained. "What they're doing is they're hunting periodical cicada nymphs that are just a few inches below the surface."
Dr. Raubb, aka the bug guy, says if you can hang around until 2038, that's when you'll see a similar explosion of cicadas as part of brood 10. Also, depending on how you feel about them, the bug guy claims it's going to be spectacular.
