Cicada project notebook

Journal entries

Just collecting thoughts, events and observations here. Written by Brian. Shawn & Bernie, lemme know if you have observations you’d like me to add or modify (your bits are stitched together from emails, text messages, and the deployment spreadsheet).

April 8

DCA weather: high 72°F low 54°F precip 0.0"

I find cicadas in our garden (ZURLBECMD1) while digging. The excitement builds for this study!

April 11

DCA weather: high 79°F low 61°F precip 0.0"

Shawn found his first cicada at South Run Dog Park in Fairfax Station while conducting fieldwork.

April 28

DCA weather: high 88°F low 64°F precip 0.0"

Shawn found several cicadas at LAFOMELVA1.

April 29

DCA weather: high 86°F low 67°F precip 0.0"

Shawn observes his first burrow with chimney at LAFOMELVA1.

May 2

DCA weather: high 83°F low 55°F precip 0.0"

Shawn found 25+ holes from cicadas at Burnt Mills E. Special Park on May 2. First day of noticing large clusters of holes in public parks.

May 8

DCA weather: high 60°F low 45°F precip 0.1"

Only current sign of cicadas is holes in the garden. I deployed automated sound recorders (hereafter recorders) at Neighborhood Nestwatch (NN) sites ZURLBECMD1 and SILLSCOMD1 in Takoma Park MD.

May 10

DCA weather: high 70°F low 53°F precip 0.0"

Shawn observes cicada shells and adult cicadas in his neighborhood.

May 11

DCA weather: high 69°F low 53°F precip 0.0"

Shawn deploys recorders at two NN sites, LAFOMELVA1 and TANGLAUDC1. He observes his first real emergence in his yard, in which 20+ emerged and began molting right before sunset.

I deploy recorders at Opal Daniels Park (Takoma Park MD) and Brookside Gardens (Wheaton MD).

I observe first shell in our yard:

May 12

DCA weather: high 67°F low 50°F precip 0.0"

Shawn deploys recorders at two NN sites, one in Silver Spring MD (FARYSIMMD1) and the other in West Springfield, VA (BUISNORVA1). I deploy a recorder at an NN site in Cooksville MD (PERNMIKMD1).

May 13

DCA weather: high 72°F low 49°F precip 0.0"

I deploy a recorder in Columbia MD (COLSKATMD1).

Our neighbor (across street from ZURLBECMD1) has big emergence in his yard. The location is ~50m from our yard but has a SW exposure and little tree cover:

May 14

DCA weather: high 73°F low 53°F precip 0.0"

Shawn observes a massive emergence night in his yard. His kids fill a 50 ounce bucket with cicada shells.

I deploy a recorder in Annapolis MD (TATEJUAMD1). Holes are the only sign of cicadas. I observe my first emergence (and first adult) at ZURLBECMD1:

May 15

DCA weather: high 78°F low 52°F precip 0.0"

I deploy a recorder at Sligo Creek Park (SLIGBBQMD1, by the golf course with the BBQ joint), in Silver Spring MD.

Shawn observed and photographed a Mississippi Kite hunting cicadas over his house! He could see the cicadas in its talons and watched as it ate while on the wing.

May 16

DCA weather: high 72°F low 54°F precip 0.0"

I deploy a recorder in Cheverly MD (SALOSHEMD1).

May 17

DCA weather: high 74°F low 54°F precip 0.0"

“I” deploy a recorder at the National Zoo in DC (on the hill between the vet hospital and Amazonia) – Becca actually deployed this one because of lack of permission to go on site.

May 18

DCA weather: high 78°F low 56°F precip 0.0"

Bernie reports the emergence is starting in the greater Baltimore area.

May 19

DCA weather: high 84°F low 59°F precip 0.0"

I deploy a recorder in the Smithsonian Castle gardens in DC. I scout Rachel Carson Conservation Park in Unity, MD as a potential site (quiet location). Lots of adult septendecim and shells observed:

I heard my first chorus (septendecim) while driving back from the park at the corner of Sundown and Damascus Roads in Unity MD (-77.0697, 39.2264).

May 20

DCA weather: high 90°F low 63°F precip 0.0"

I deploy a recorder at the Rachel Carson Conservation Park in Unity, MD (RACHCARMD1).

Shawn heard his first chorus at 9am at his house.

I hear a chorus of septendecim at ZURLBECMD1 in Takoma Park for the first time.

May 21

DCA weather: high 83°F low 60°F precip 0.0"

Chorus of exclusively septendecim at ZURLBECMD1. At 11 am, the Sound Pressure Level (SPL) was 53dB, recorded at the location of the recorder.

I record Northern cardinal with septendecim chorus at Long Branch:

Shawn began to see multiple species of cicadas. He specifically noticed the smaller cassini species finally mixing in with the larger septendecim and heard them during the evening. He also began to notice many females mixed in with the males that were emerging.

May 22

DCA weather: high 90°F low 63°F precip 0.0"

SPL reading at ZURLBECMD1 was 58 dB.

Bernie reports that choruses have begun in the greater Baltimore area.

May 23

DCA weather: high 93°F low 75°F precip 0.0"

I wake up at 03:30 and heard a rather full chorus of septendecim and gray catbirds singing. Unexpected on both counts.

SPL reading at ZURLBECMD1 was 62 dB. At Long Branch Park (what seems to be the epicenter by ZURLBECMD1), the SPL was 72 dB.

A few cassini were heard in the morning. By the afternoon, there was a huge cassini chorus. A few sporatic sependecula were heard.

Recording of the chorus in the morning show only septendecim singing:

… but by the afternoon show the cassinis joining the show:

Note: The four little blips between roughly 4 and 6 seconds are an American crow.

I also got a close-up recording of a Gray catbird in the din:

May 24

DCA weather: high 80°F low 72°F precip 0.12"

Rain in morning and cooler temperatures. Chorus of septendecim started at 10:00, but was comparatively quiet (54 dB) and intermittent. The chorus stopped when it began raining again in the afternoon and did not return for the remainder of the day.

At Shawn’s house in Virginia, he also noticed a reduction in chorus with the light rain and cooler temperatures. Cicadas were calling at 5:45am before it rained, but then were quiet until after 10:30.

May 26

DCA weather: high 90°F low 69°F precip 0.0"

I deploy a song meter at Meadowside Nature Center as monster thunderstorm starts to roll in (despite no rain at DCA).

May 27

Rita finds a blind grackle on the street … then Michael texts me that his site reported yesterday that they found two dead grackles … then Tucker finds a dying fledgling on the street. Tucker and I take the fledgling to City Wildlife. They report that they’ve had over 50 grackles come in. A conversation begins between Bird House, pathology, me, and Scott to see if we can investigate whether there is a link between the cicadas and what appears to be a pretty big die-off.

May 29

DCA weather: high 59°F low 51°F precip 1.4"

No cicada sound.

May 30

DCA weather: high 57°F low 50°F precip 1.4"

Almost no cicada sound throughout the day. A short, but quiet, chorus of septendecim around 4 pm that lasted less than 15 minutes.

May 31

DCA weather: high 75°F low 50°F precip 0.0"

Cicadas return, much quieter, but certainly present. All three species heard. Observed a few with the fungal infection.

June 1

DCA weather: high 77°F low 58°F precip 0.0"

Cicadas chorus is increasing again.

June 2

DCA weather: high 81°F low 65°F precip 0.0"

SPL in yard 64 dB.

Loudest SPL reading I’ve gotten yet – 80.1 dB! A huge cassini chorus. It was on Long Branch, near Carroll Ave at 15:17. All three species were present. In the recording, you can hear the monstrously loud cassini and lower hum of the septendecim. It pretty cool that you can see the chorus get louder and quieter (don’t know what the weird blue band is on these spectrograms):

This was an interesting one. A pair of cardinals (male and female) in a constant state of chipping. I was about 2 meters away from them and it was still hard to hear them over the cassini:

Observed several cicada (all septendecim) with the fungal infection.

The plot thickens on bird deaths. Scott reports seeing a bird yesterday with a cloaca impacted with cicada. Michael finds an deceased impacted Blue Jay at one of his sites.

June 3

Changed batteries and SD cards on ZURLBECMD1.