Ruffled Feathers and Spilled Milk

Farming with ducks and dairy goats, chickens and children.

Have you heard?

Posted on | May 1, 2011 | 4 Comments

If not, you will be hearing it shortly.

The cicadas have hatched.  That’s right,  after 13 years of waiting, they climbed out of their underground holes, and are shedding their skins in preparation for breeding season.  A brief and loud season of ecstasy before they die and leave their young behind to repeat the process.

We woke to find them all over the property.  But the barn was a particularly popular location.

We even got to see some as they hatched.

I am betting the heat of the day will bring quite a ruckus.

I love stuff like this for a lot of reasons.

1.  I am a nature nerd at heart—raised on Mutual of Omaha’s Wild Kingdom and still watching Nature every Sunday night.

2.  Taking pictures of newly hatched cicadas and blogging about it beats doing the breakfast dishes anytime.

3.  Doesn’t this count as an educational activity for the kids?  Which means I’ve checked off an enrichment activity by 8am and can now let the kids zone out in front of the TV while I scrapbook.

4.  It lets me know that farming without tilling or spraying insecticides really does pay off in the end.  Every cicada that hatches today tells me this farm is still healthy and safe.  Which will keep me from running to the store for Round-Up to put on the fence line.  (Even though I really, really, really want to!).

For more info on this exciting phenomenon coming to the Piedmont area, check out this article:

http://www.news-record.com/content/2011/04/13/article/cicadas_coming_to_the_carolinas

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Comments

4 Responses to “Have you heard?”

  1. kmmykat
    May 1st, 2011 @ 6:40 pm

    so…if I plan a field trip to your house on a Monday to see the cicadas (and of course all the other wonderful examples of science in action you have wandering around) is there enough educational value to take the rest of the week off?? I’m thinking yes!

  2. jazz
    November 16th, 2011 @ 12:16 am

    Oh so these are the noisy creatures that keeps my baby awake, lol. But they are cute, I mean their noise.

  3. Silvana D. Potter
    November 16th, 2011 @ 8:42 pm

    I’m a nature lover and cicada’s sound calm my mind. I’m also amazed to every cicadas transformation, they look magical in their adult transformation.

  4. Karla Mendez
    March 9th, 2012 @ 12:13 am

    Oh, my! I didn’t know cicadas die after they hatch their off-springs and that this happen every 13 years… It was sure an interesting post. I learned something new. I am also pleased to know that you have clean and fresh environment with the cicadas all around. Places like yours are a little difficult to find in many other parts of the globe…

    Karla Mendez of http://www.spurpress.com

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