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After 17 years, cicadas could settle in Hampton Roads

Posted at 11:30 AM, Apr 27, 2016
and last updated 2016-04-27 23:21:50-04

CHESAPEAKE, Va. - After 17 years cicadas will soon be popping up from underground.

Experts expect the insects to rise in parts of Ohio, New York, Pennsylvania, Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia in May.

Local Entomologist Kevin Delaney said whether or not you see cicadas, you'll more than likely hear their "singing".

"It's the striations of their wings.  They're very loud and sometimes it goes on," Delaney explained.

The noise is the male cicadas mating call.

Delaney said the insects emerge from the ground for a short adult life  to reproduce.

The female lays eggs in tree bark and twigs.

Once the egg hatches, the larva drops into the ground for another 17 years.

According to Delaney,  people living near trees will likely see or hear them.

"It's usually in the forested areas where there's a lot of trees. People that are way out in a farm field will probably not see them," Delaney said.

Once the cicadas emerge, Delaney said they will die after about two or three weeks.

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‘Billions’ of cicadas expected to rise from the ground in Virginia, other states in May