Listen to the full interview.
Tom O Dell says the return of the 17-year cicadas is an unusual wildlife event he hopes people can appreciate and not be too anxious about what will happen. He doesn t expect the cicadas to cause any significant damage and says they are no harm to humans as they don t bite or sting. He says he has seen a few around already but says the warm weather will cause that number to increase, and they will soon emerge in parts of southeastern Michigan and in a handful of other states in the eastern half of the country, after developing underground for 17 years.
Overview
This summer will be a lot noisier than usual. 17-year Brood X (ten) cicadas are expected to emerge in the billions in every part of the WEMU listening area. The last irruption was in 2004.
Periodical cicadas are thought to have evolved the 17-year pattern to avoid predation. They are eaten by nearly anything that can fit them in their mouths, so the survival strategy is to win by sheer numbers. The event will last about two months, beginning in May when the soil warms to 64°F. The nymphs crawl up the trunk of the tree where they molt into the adult form.
U-M’s Matthaei Botanical Gardens offering virtual field trips
Meredith Bruckner, Community News Producer, All About Ann Arbor
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ANN ARBOR – Who remembers field trips?
The pandemic has taken away so many experiences this year for students, including loading up into a school bus and venturing out to learn and see new things.
Luckily, University of Michigan’s Matthaei Botanical Gardens staff are organizing virtual field trips for classrooms and groups.
Virtual field trips are offered Monday through Thursday from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The cost is $30 per classroom and $1 per student.
Each field trip runs for 45 minutes and includes a Q&A session for students at the end.