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Cicadas, Why?

Surely, they have a purpose, right?

4 min readAug 3, 2025
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A photo of a disgusting insect called a cicada
Photo by Sagar Vasnani on Unsplash

Let me paint the scene. It’s early June. You walk outside on a sunny evening to dispose of your trash. After taking a few steps, you pause. There’s a loud sound that echoes through the trees. The decibel is overwhelming. You realize it’s not crickets or birds you hear.

It’s the sound of cicadas.

They’re screaming.

That sound is the only one you hear. You rush to complete your task to escape the attack of cicadas.

Another day, you look out your window and see a swarm of cicadas clinging to a tree.

Was there a prophecy we missed?

Cicadas are everywhere. They fly at you and diebomb your head and body. You run from your car to your front door to avoid them. Still, one flies into your face.

Peaceful evenings transform into a dystopian world. The simple act of throwing trash away resembles the opening scene in a horror movie where some unsuspecting character is introduced and encounters the villain.

If you’ve tried to enjoy a nice evening on your backyard deck during a cicada infestation, you’ve probably been driven inside after only a few minutes. The collective sound they make is deafening.

Nancy Parish
Nancy Parish

Written by Nancy Parish

Amateur Cat Herder. Previously, Contributing Editor for CWIM. My ebook Life with Scout: The Blind Kitty Chronicles avail. https://thesoundandfurry.com/