Blue-Eyed Cicada Spotted In New Lenox Township, Best Pals Make Find

NEW LENOX, IL — It's unclear who was screaming louder—the cicadas, or the group of five girls who stumbled upon a very rare one.

New Lenox Township best friends Lillian Lofgren (6), and Savannah Halm (7), were on a walk with their sisters and other family on Gougar Road and Rte 6 Thursday evening, when they found a blue-eyed cicada.

And "YEEEEES!" It's definitely the best part of their summer so far, they exclaimed.

Lillian and her sister Adrienne, 3, were with Lillian's bestie Savannah and her twin sisters Addy and Emmy, 5, when they made the find. Their encounter with "Bluey" was short (like Bluey's lifespan), as it flew away shortly after.

This year marked a unique occasion: two separate broods of cicadas that only come out of the ground every 13 and 17 years, respectively, hatched together in Illinois for the first time in 221 years, experts say. Experts say the blue-eyed cicadas are so rare, they're "1 in a million." People are skeptical, though, as more pop up. One has been found in Orland Park, Oak Lawn, Darien and Naperville, to name a few. But it's easy to think they're not-so-rare, when you lose perspective of the hordes (and hordes) of cicadas that have hatched.

"They knew how rare it was," said Lillian and Adrienne's mom, Courtney Lofgren.

The girls aren't frightened by the cicadas (unlike a certain Patch editor); they pick them up and hold them, Lofgren said.

"They like 'em!" Lofgren said.

The self-proclaimed "Blue-Eyed Cicada Squad" were completely buzzing off their discovery.

"They were really excited, lots of screaming, writing songs about it," Lofgren said. "They wouldn’t go to bed because they were so excited.

"They instantly said they were going to be famous."