Cicada Invasion Arriving: See Where They Will Be In PA

PENNSYLVANIA — After 17 years underground, a large group of periodical cicadas known as Brood XIV is about to emerge - and Pennsylvania will not be spared from the effects of the extremely noisy insects.

Brood XIV will surface in 13 states. In addition to Pennsylvania, people in Georgia, Kentucky, Massachusetts, Maryland, North Carolina, New Jersey, New York, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia also can expect them, according to CicadaMania.com.

There are more than 3,000 species of cicadas across the world. They spend most of their lives underground and emerge only at the end of their lives to mate and lay their eggs.

The Brood XIV periodical cicada emergence won’t matching 2024’s voluminous cicada emergence — in which billions of 13- and 17-year cicadas came out of the ground across parts of the Southeast and Midwest - especially Illinois, where both broods emerged.

However, Brood XIV is the second-largest periodical brood, according to the University of Connecticut. The largest? Brood XIX is the largest.

According to the Penn State Extension, Pennsylvania counties that can expect an influx of cicadas this year include Adams, Bedford, Berks, Blair, Centre, Clearfield, Clinton, Cumberland, Franklin, Huntingdon, Lackawanna, Lehigh, Luzerne, Lycoming, Mifflin, Montour, Northumberland, Perry, Potter, Schuylkill, Snyder, Tioga, Union, and York.

Cicadas come out of the ground when the soil 8 inches below the surface gets to 64 degrees or warmer. They will begin appearing soon before likely vanishing in mid-May.

Male cicadas are known for their extremely loud chirping, which is performed as part of their mating ritual and can reach 100 decibels. That is about as loud as a jackhammer or a lawn mower struggling with particularly tall grass.

Though their noise can be irritating, cicadas are not harmful to humans, most pets or trees and shrubs.