FIVE THINGS ABOUT A CICADA FEEDING FRENZY

1 CICADAS RISING

After spending 17 years underground, billions of cicadas, known as Brood X, are coming out of the ground in 15 states this summer to sing, mate, lay eggs and die. Americans

on the East Coast will have the rare opportunity to witness this dramatic

natural spectacle.

2 FEEDING FRENZY

In a dining frenzy likened

to Thanksgiving, many predators will feast, from your cat and dog to rats and venomous snakes. “Almost everyone will eat cicadas,” said Richard Karban, an entomologist at the University of California at Davis who studies periodical cicadas. The defenceless cicadas are plentiful, and particularly vulnerable when they first emerge,

Karban said.

3 BABY BOOMS

With plenty of grub at hand — or paw — after the cicada emergence, we may see more of some of these species than before. Karban pointed to documented “baby booms” among birds during the years cicadas

emerged, adding that species such as grackles, starlings and blackbirds consume “crazy quantities of cicadas.”

4 COPPERHEADS

Snakes are not really out more than they typically are, according to Travis Anthony, president of the Virginia Herpetological Society. But people visiting wooded areas for the cicada emergence might spot a snake basking in the sun in the forest or in tree hollows. While many snake species eat cicadas, Anthony said, copperheads are a particularly menacing predator. Photographer Sarah Phillips advises people hoping to witness the pursuit in person to wear

closed-toed shoes.

5 A TASTY TREAT FOR HUMANS TOO

Insect-eating is not common in the United States, where prevalent cultural norms include a disgust factor. But since a 2013 report from the United Nations, advocates here have promoted insects as a sustainable protein source, leading to a wave of high-tech bug powders and snacks over the past few years. And cicadas are eaten in many other cultures. Now that the periodical cicadas are emerging again in the Eastern U.S., chefs, entomologists and insect-curious folks are prepared to explore the culinary possibilities.