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Cicadas in review

By Kristi Hendricks - Garden Inspirations | Sep 10, 2021

What has all the racket been about this summer? That high-pitched whine heard most frequently on the hottest days, sounding like a dentist’s drill or the call for the college semester to begin. Recently, that would be the male dogday cicada, singing for a willing mate. Somewhat unusual in nature, the females are always silent. The dogday, aka harvest fly, is not to be confused with the periodical cicada (both the 17-year and 13-year) that bombarded our neighborhoods earlier in the season.

The annual dogday cicada has a larger dark brown body, with a green band at the back of the head stretching into its wing margins. Their population is much smaller, and they don’t have a swarming habit. The life cycles of annual cicadas are two-to-five years. Yet, some adults emerge every summer, and their appearance is scattered over the summer season.

From the home gardener’s perspective, an important distinction between the dogday and the periodical cicada is that the annual cicada ordinarily doesn’t cause much harm to our trees. These cicadas are usually associated with mature, well-established hardwoods like oaks and maples.

Periodical cicadas, though related to the dogday, are smaller and black with red eyes and orange legs. They are the longest lived species of insect in North America and emerge en masse. They can cause significant damage to young trees, which have branches perfect for egg laying. Periodicals target the slight branches of newly-planted fruit and ornamental trees, including apple, pear and dogwood.

The female periodical cicada lays her eggs in the small twigs of these trees. She inserts her saw-like, egg laying tube into the branches and places her eggs under the thin bark, splitting the twigs. These small branches wither and die, as you may have noticed in recent weeks. A female may lay up to several dozen eggs in a single branch, depositing eggs in 40-50 sites. That is a lot of eggs!

The immature cicadas do not feed on the twig where they hatch, but drop and burrow to the tree’s root system, staying there for either 13 or 17 years. These nymphs damage the tender roots by drinking root sap. After serving their time below ground, mature nymphs tunnel up from the soil to climb onto nearby plants and vertical structures to molt. As they transition to the winged adult stage, their familiar outer shells are left behind on tree trunks and birdhouse poles much like a snake leaves its skin behind after shedding.

Cats and dogs are known to find cicadas to be tasty treats and entertaining to chase about the lawn. Cicadas are high on bird, snake and raccoon menus, too. Identify other harmful insects destructive to trees, shrubs and forbs, by following the West Virginia Extension Service website.

Kristi Hendricks is a graduate of Shepherd College and West Virginia University and a Master Gardener with the Virginia Cooperative Extension. After living in Virginia for a number of years, she has returned to her native Jefferson County. She can be reached at belowthejames@yahoo.com.