Brood II cicadas to emerge soon in five midstate counties

(Undated) — Cicadas that come out of the ground every 17 years are expected to make their latest appearance in five midstate counties.

Get ready to hear a lot of it this summer as Brood Two emerges in Berks, Dauphin, Lancaster, Lebanon and Schulkill counties. The periodical cicadas are noticeable by their orange eyes and orange-colored wings.

Greg Hoover, an ornamental entomologist at Penn State, says they generally don’t do a lot of damage, but can be a problem for young fruit trees. “In fruit orchards, folks usually do initiate some pest management efforts there to try to reduce the egg-laying damage that is infliced by the females,” he says. “But from a feeding standpoint, there is next to nothing int he way of damage caused.”

Once soil temperatures get around 64 degrees, the periodicals will start to emerge and Hoover says it’s usually preceded by some rainfall. Along with their “song” filling their air, their molted shells will also litter lawns until the next generation hatches and burrows under ground for another 17 years.