Their goal following the years spent underground is to find a partner, to breed and then to die. On emerging, the insects blanket the trees and ground, with the males filling the air with buzzing and whistling to attract females. With air temperatures and surface soils warming from climate change, scientists are also keen to learn how the creatures are responding. said Chris Simon, an evolutionary biologist at the University of Connecticut who has studied the insects for more than three decades. The 17-year cicadas emerging this year make up Brood X, one of the largest periodical cicada broods.

Source: Daily Mirror May 28, 2021 00:35 UTC