ENTIRE SUNDAY FORECAST COMING UP.
JENNIFER: THANKS, TAYLOR.PDURING TODAY, YOU MIGHT GO HUNTING IN
YOUR YARD FOR SIGNS OF 17-YEAR CICADAS WHO ARE MAKING THEIR WAY
UNDERNEATH INTO THE SURFACE.
JOINING US TO TALK MORE ABOUT BROOD X IS OUR BUG GUY,
UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND ENTOMOLOGIST, DR. MICHAEL RAUPP.
GOOD MORNING.
GREAT TO SEE YOU.
>> HEY, JEN, SO NICE TO JOIN YOU THIS MORNING.
LOOK AT THIS.
THESE ARE T PARENTS.
THESE ARE THE PARENTS OF THE LITTLE TEENAGERS, AND GUESS
WHAT?
THEY'RE ALMOST READY TO GO.
IN FACT, I WENT OUT LAST NIGHT, AND I SAID, HEY, GANG, HOW WOULD
YOU LIKE TO GO AND MEET SOME FOLKS?
THEY SAID SURE.
HERE IS ONE OF THE VERY FIRST PERIODICAL CICADAS THAT WE'LL BE
SEEING IN A FEW SHORT WEEKS HERE IN THE DMV.
LET'S SEE IF HE CAN GIVE YOU A WAVE.
HE'S SAYING, HEY, I CAN'T WAIT TO GET OUT FROM UNDERGROUND.
I'VE BEEN THERE FOR 17 YEARS.
JEN, WHAT FOLKS CAN BE LOOKING FOR RIGHT NOW, WE'RE SEEING LOTS
OF SIGNS OF CICADA ACTIVITY.
IF YOU GO OUT UNDERNEATH YOUR TREE, AND YOU SEE HOLES LIKE
THIS IN THE GROUND, GUESS WHAT?
THIS IS GOING TO TRANSLATE INTO ABOUT 1.3 MILLION CICADAS PER
ACRE.
THIS IS UNDERNEATH MY MAPLE TREE OUT BACK.
JENNIFER: WOW.
SO IF WE SEE THOSE HOLES, WHAT DOES IT MEAN?
THEY'VE COME UP AND ARE STARTING TO CLIMB UP THE TREES?
>> NO, THEY'RE GETTING READY.
ABOUT A MONTH AHEAD OF SCHEDULE, THEY'LL BEGIN TO BUILD THAT EXIT
GALLERY BECAUSE WHEN IT'S TIME, WITH THE SOIL TEMPERATURE
REACHES 64 DEGREES FAHRENHEIT, THEY KNOW THAT'S THE KEY TO GO
OUT INTO THE TREE TOPS.
JENNIFER: I THINK THIS IS SUCH AN AMAZING NATURE STORY AND A
LOVE STORY IF YOU WANT TO LOOK AT IT THAT WAY BECAUSE THAT'S
WHY THE BOYS MAKE THE NOISE.
>> IT'S GOING TO BE A BIG BOY BIN IN THE TREE TOP.
THE MALES SING.
IT'S ALL ABOUT ROMANCE.
HOW MUCH BETTER CAN THIS POSSIBLY GET?
SO THEY'VE BEEN TEENAGERS UNDERGROUND LIVING A COVID-LIKE
EXISTENCE.
WHEN THEY COME OUT, THEY'LL WANT TO GET IN THE TREE TOPS.
IT'S GOING TO BE A CICADA-PALOOZA.
THIS IS YOU KNOW NIC.
>> DR. FAUCI BETTER NOT SEE THE CICADAS.
HE WON'T BE HAPPY WITH THE LACK OF SOCIAL DISTANCING.
>> THEY DO HAVE MASKS.
JENNIFER: DESCRIBE HOW THEY MAKE THE NOISE.
ONLY THE BOYS MAKE THE NOISE.
THEY HAVE SOMETHING SPECIAL ON THEM.
>> THE MALE CICADA HAS WHAT WE CALL A TIMBLE WARGOT ON EITHER
SIDE OF THE ABDOMEN.
IT'S A DRUM HEAD.
THEY CAN VIBRATE THAT DRUM HEAD.
THEIR ABDOMEN IS HOLLOW TO ACT AS A REVERB RATION CHAMBER TO
AMPLIFY THE SOUND.
WHEN THEY'RE CHORUSSING THAT WILL REACH BETWEEN 80 AND 100
DECIBELS, THE SOUND OF THE JET AIRCRAFT OR A LAWN MOWER IN THE
BACKYARD.
IT'S GOING TO BE SPECTACULAR.
JENNIFER: WE'RE THE EPICENTER OF THE PHENOMENON.
IT'S NOT GOING TO LAST LONG.
YOU WANT PEOPLE TO ENJOY.
>> ABSOLUTELY.
THIS IS A CHANCE FOR CHILDREN OF ALL AGES TO GO OUTDOORS ON A
BRIGHT SUNNY DAY, SEE A PHENOMENON THAT HAPPENS NOWHERE
ELSE ON EARTH, NOWHERE ELSE IN THE UNIVERSE, PROBABLY.
AND JUST ENJOY ALL THE VARIOUS ELEMENTS THAT MOTHER NATURE HAS
TO OFFER.
IT'S GOING TO BE LIKE HAVING A NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC SPECIAL IN
YOUR BACKYARD.
WE HOPE PEOPLE GO OUT AND ENJOY.
IT ONLY HAPPENS A FEW TIMES IN A LIFETIME.
>> TELL PEOPLE AGAIN WHEN THEY MIGHT ACTUALLY START TO SEE THE
CICADAS AND WHEN THEY'LL START TO HEAR THEM.
>> WE'LL HAVE THE VANGUARD COMING OUT ANY TIME.
AS WE START TO MOVE INTO THE EARLY WEEKS OF MAY, WE'LL
DEFINITELY BEGIN TO HEAR REPORTS.
THEN IT'S GOING TO CRESCENDO.
SO BY THE SECOND AND THIRD WEEKS OF MAY, DEFINITELY BY MEMORIAL
DAY, HEY, IT'S GOING TO BE PEAKING OUT AND THEN DURING THE
FIRST WEEK OF JUNE, IT WILL BEGIN TO TABLE OFF.
BY THE END OF JUNE, THEY'LL BE GONE.
THEY'LL BE WITH US PROBABLY THE FIRST ONES COULD COME OUT AS
EARLY AS THE LAST WEEK OF APRIL AND THEY'LL BE HERE THROUGH
JUNE.
SO THERE WILL BE A NICE, EIGHT-WEEK PERIOD TO ENJOY THE
PERIODICAL CICADAS.
JENNIFER: YOU'LL BE WITH US A LOT.
WE'RE LUCKY TO HAVE YOU IN OUR OWN BACKYARD JUST LIKE THE
CICADAS.
YOU'RE WANTED NATIONALLY TO TALK ABOUT THESE.
THANK YOU FOR JOINING US.
>> IT'S ALWAYS MY PLEASURE, SKREN.
GO OUT, IT'S GOING TO BE SPECTACULAR.
LOOK FOR THE HOLES IN YOUR YARD.
THAT'S GOING TO TELL YOU, YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE PRETTY COOL
TEENAGERS 0 IT THERE.
JENNIFER: I CAN'T WAIT.
I'M GOING TO LOOK LATER TODAY.