Look: Cicadas swarm Kings Island visitors in viral TikTok videos
Greater Cincinnati residents began feeling the emergence of cicadas when Brood XIV (as in 14) started appearing in the area around early May. Now, the presence of those insects is maybe being felt a little too much.
The loud-screaming, pesky bugs (which are emerging in numbers around the lower billions in 13 states, including Ohio) have infiltrated one of the area's summer hotspots: Kings Island. And thrill-seekers aren't sure how to deal with them.
Some Kings Island visitors expressed their dismay at the cicadas on TikTok.
In every video, you can hear the bugs' piercing screams as they swarm and latch onto parkgoers' clothing (don't worry, they don't bite).
Below are just some of our favorite Kings Island cicada videos. Enjoy!
The Enquirer reached out to Kings Island regarding the insect infiltration and is awaiting a response.
Gene Kritsky, professor emeritus of biology with Mount St. Joseph University in Cincinnati, said cicadas are still approaching their peak in many areas. Kritsky, founder of Cicada Safari, an app that crowdsources and reviews data on cicadas, attributed it to the cooler, rainy days in May.
"People should notice the loud singing declining over the next two weeks, and the singing should be over in early July," he said in an email June 10.
Brood XIV is one of 15 recognized broods of periodical cicadas that emerge every 13 or 17 years, and one of four that appear in the Buckeye State, according to ODNR. They emerge when the soil temperature reaches 64 degrees, which typically happens in the second half of May.
They are active for three to four weeks as they focus on mating and reproduction, per ODNR. Male periodical cicadas produce a deafening chorus of calls to attract females. Once mated, female cicadas deposit their eggs into the branches of trees and shrubs.
This 2025 brood was set to emerge in greater numbers along the I-71 corridor and eastward, Kritsky previously told The Enquirer.
Scattered light emergences are also likely be seen in parts of western Cincinnati. However, the area will not see the numbers experienced in 2021.
Here are the counties likely to be hit the hardest:
Adams.
Brown.
Parts of Butler.
Clermont.
Most of Clinton.
Most of Gallia.
Parts of Hamilton.
Highland.
Parts of Ross.
Most of Warren.
Ohio Connect Team reporter Chad Murphy contributed to this report.
This article originally appeared on Cincinnati Enquirer: Look: Cicadas are swarming Kings Island visitors in Cincinnati
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