No, cicadas won't bite: Five debunked myths about cicadas

USA Today

19-05-2025

No, cicadas won't bite: Five debunked myths about cicadas
Cicada Brood XIV, the second-largest periodical brood, has begun to emerge in some Eastern states. Along with some possible stragglers from other broods, including Brood I, Brood VI and Brood X, could emerge this year as well, according to the University of Connecticut.
Based on their past behavior, cicadas from Brood XIV will likely make their appearances in 14 states, said Gene Kritsky, founder of Cicada Safari, a group that gathers data on the insects. They include Georgia, Kentucky, Maryland, Massachusetts, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Ohio, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia, and Indiana in nine southern counties.
Although the insects are large, noisy and pretty annoying, they're not harmful. Here are five other common myths about cicadas:
Myth: Cicadas are like locusts
Some people interpret the sudden presence of a huge number of cicadas outside their home as a bad omen, much like the biblical plague of locusts.
Even though they have been referred to as locusts, cicadas are their own family of insect. Locusts are a type of grasshopper.
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Similar to how cicadas emerge all at once, locusts travel in big swarms. Locusts are significantly more harmful than cicadas because they devour large amounts of vegetation and harm nearby farms. Cicadas, on the other hand, consume tree sap and are not dangerous to crops.
Myth: Exposure to cicada noise will cause hearing loss
As the second-largest periodical cicada, Brood XIV can make a lot of noise when the male cicadas attempt to attract mates with their buzzing sounds. That can be especially true when there are a lot of insects in the yard.
But it's unlikely their noise will permanently harm your hearing – unless you're exposed to it for several hours consecutively at very close range. According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, noise from cicadas does not cause hearing loss.
Cicadas can reach high decibel levels
According to CicadaMania, each species has its own sound, and the chorus can reach 90 to 100 decibels – about as loud as a lawn mower.
Myth: Cicadas don't pee on you
Yes, cicadas can pee on you, in fact, quite a lot. It is commonly called honeydew or cicada rain, according to John Cooly, an entomologist at the University of Connecticut.
Periodical cicadas, which appear in large numbers once every 13 to 17 years, have the unique ability to urinate in high-velocity jets, according to a recent article in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences (PNAS).
Most insects that consume xylem tree sap typically pee in small droplets to conserve energy as they expel waste fluid, according to the 2024 study. But because cicadas consume 300 times their weight in plant sap, they expel waste fluid in jets to be more energy efficient.
How animal species compare when releasing waste fluid
The reason why certain animals urinate in jets while others urinate in droplets can be explained by two concepts – The animal's size and the shape of the liquid as it exits the species. Researchers believe that the bigger body sizes and the energy savings allow cicadas to urinate more like large mammals.
Myth: Cicadas bite
No, cicadas aren't equipped to bite or sting like bees or wasps, ants and other insects, according to Cicada Mania, a website devoted to cicadas. Their mouthparts do have the ability to "pierce and suck" fluids from trees and plants. They also have prickly legs and feet which could prick your skin if they are held.
Myth: Cicadas are dangerous to pets
It may seem like a zombie-esque "Night of the Living Dead" as cicadas start to rise from the ground in spring, but there's no reason to worry – even for your pets. The phrase "zombie cicadas" refers to cicadas that have contracted the fungus Massospora cicadina, which might cause them to behave strangely, but these cicadas are not harmful to people or pets.
Cicadas don't bite or sting and are more of a nuisance than a danger. Cicadas aren't poisonous if a pet ingests a few. But eating too many could lead to an upset stomach, vomiting, or diarrhea, according to Dr. Jerry Klein, Chief Veterinary Officer for the American Kennel Club.
The cicadas will only spend about five weeks above ground before they die off and leave us with the piles of dead, fallen carcasses.
For those who detest the cicadas, good news. Because of the cicada's 17-year life cycle, Brood XIV won't be seen again until 2042.
CONTRIBUTING London Gibson/USA TODAY NETWORK, Clare Mulroy, Saleen Martin and Jim Sergent/USA TODAY
SOURCE University of Connecticut, Elio J. Challita at Chemical and Biomolecular Engineering, Georgia Institute of Technology in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences; Scientific American, Hearing Health Foundation, Cicada Mania, Cicada Safari, Lander University and USA TODAY research
This story was updated to add new information.