2025 Cicadas are Arriving in Western North Carolina Now!

Periodical Cicada Brood XIV, which is a seventeen-year cicada, will emerge in Western North Carolina in May 2025. Nymphs emerging from the ground in cycles will molt into adults when the soil temperature—about 8” down—reaches 64℉. Each adult lives only about two weeks but this brood will be around for up to six weeks.

Their short lives consist of finding a mate and laying eggs.  The males are responsible for the shrill noises that they make to attract females.  Once the male has fertilized the eggs, the females make cuts in the twigs and branches of trees and shrubs and lay their eggs in a double row about 4-5 inches long. The new generation of nymphs hatch in about six to ten weeks and drop to the ground where they burrow and feed on the roots of trees for the next 17 years.

For more information:

Periodical Cicadas in the Landscape   (NCSU Factsheet)
Here They Come Again! More Periodical Cicadas Will Emerge This Spring, by Matt Bertone
Yes, Periodical Cicadas are Coming Soon!  (2024 Blog -post on this website)
The Cicadas Are Coming! Fear Not, Though, by Matt Bertone