MIAMI VALLEY — The Miami Valley has recently experienced cooler temperatures and they could have an impact on our current cicada season.
Cicadas depend on warm weather and direct sunlight. When the temperatures began to drop between 60 and 70 degrees, cicadas tend to crawl back underground, according the Wright State University Professor of Biology Don Cipollini.
“They are cold-blooded animals. So their behavior is very much tied to the temperature,” Cipollini told News Center 7′s Ronnell Hunt.
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According to Cipollini, soil temperatures need to be at least 64 degrees at the surface for cicadas to emerge.
But will the current cooler temperatures hurt the cicadas? Cipollini explained how the current weather is affecting the insects physically.
“They wouldn’t necessarily suffer health-wise, but but it will slow down their development,” Cipollini said.
He noted that the this will likely change how long we could see cicadas. The Miami Valley could not see cicadas sporadically, instead of in swarms, until mid-to-late June.
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