Emerging cicadas will have environmental benefit, expert says

(WBBM NEWSRADIO) -- The intersecting emergence of two broods of periodical cicadas for the first time since 1803 has some people worried, but scientists are excited for the once-in-a-lifetime experience and the benefits it will bring.

Tricia Bethke, a specialist at the Morton Arboretum, said the exoskeletons of cicadas will give back.

“What ends up happening is [the exoskeletons] end up falling off the tree or the plant, and they go into the soil, and that’s a nutrient for the soil. So, it’s a beneficial insect, if you will,” she said.

Broods 19 and 13 will not overlap around Chicago. If they converge, that will be closer to Springfield.

Cicada nymphs will start emerging when the soil reaches 64 degrees.

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