Your 2024 cicada guide

This spring, keep an eye and ear out for billions of periodical cicadas emerging from their prolonged dormancy across much of the Midwest and South.

Cicadas spend most of their life underground as nymphs before erupting from the earth and engulfing surrounding trees. They’ll live for a few weeks for the sole purpose of mating and lay their eggs underground, where the cycle continues.

Two separate broods are expected to make a rare in-sync appearance in 2024: Brood XIII, which emerges every 17 years, and Brood XIX, which is on a 13-year cycle.

Check the map to see if you’re in one of the zones. This post was produced and edited by Megan McGrew, Molly Finnegan and Jackie Hai.

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