It’s entirely possible you’ve spent your entire life as a resident of the great North State – or you’ve recently moved here and just love the region – and all you’ve ever seen or heard of cicadas are their exoskeletons on pine trees in the front yard or the hum of their song on summer evenings. Well, we’re here to tell you all that you don’t know about our musical neighbors and how they may or may not affect your home.

The Simple Stuff

Cicadas are insects that are best known throughout North Carolina for the songs sung by male cicadas and the previously mentioned shed exoskeletons. Cicadas create their “song” by flexing their tymbals, drum-like organs (they name even sounds drum-like) found in their abdomens. The sound – basically a sequence of rapid clicks – is amplified by the cicada’s mostly hollow abdomen.

Cicadas begin life as a rice-shaped egg, which the female deposits in a groove she makes in a tree limb. Why does this matter to you or other homeowners? The groove in the branch provides shelter and exposes the tree fluids, which the young cicadas feed on. These grooves can kill small branches, and when the branches die and leaves turn brown, it is called flagging.

Once ready, young cicadas crawl from the groove and fall to the ground where they will dig until finding roots to feed on. Once they locate roots, cicada will stay underground from 2 to 17 years depending on the species in North Carolina. Now, most trees and shrubs will be OK as cicadas feed on their roots, but if you want to be proactive, there are a few steps you can take to protect your yard.

Non-Pesticide Ways To Protect From Cicadas

1. Wrap netting, or insect exclusion screens, around small trees or individual tree limbs to keep the cicadas off them. You can get this netting from stores that sell landscaping supplies.
2. Spray cicadas off of trees and shrubs with a hose.
3. Manually pick them off with your hand.
4.  Use insect barrier tape or a sticky solution.

If you are concerned that cicadas or other insects might overtake your yard and plant life around your home, feel free to contact Critter Control in Durham and Raleigh NC at 919-328-3976 or check out our contact portal on our website.