Politics
Cicada invasion to spark wave of disease-ridden rats once bugs die off as starving vermin look for new food source
AS BILLIONS of bugs are set to swarm the US after a 17-year hiatus underground, a ghastly vermin infestation dining on the generous amount of winged protein may follow.
Health officials in Maryland’s Montgomery County are sounding cicada alarm bells as the rise of what are known as the 2021 Brood X cicadas squirming through warmer soil to the earth’s surface may become a fetching all day and night buffet for sickly rats, according to WTOP.
Maryland health officials are concerned the 17-year phenomena of Brood X cicadas will lure rats who will feast on them and then stick around[/caption]
Reports of an infestation of diseased vermin rose back in 2004 during the last Brood X occurrence[/caption]
So as rats come for the bug feast and then 8 weeks later when the cicada phenomenon ends as scientists suspect – officials fear that the rats may stick around and scavenge for other food sources like the ones that exist inside peoples’ homes.
The last time the Brood X made an appearance was back in the summer of 2004.
Rat complaints in Montgomery County at that time tallied 436 versus 60 the year before, according to the television station.
In 2020, the station found there were a total of only 31 rat complaints lodged.
There are over 3,400 species of cicadas in the world and they are part of the order Hemiptera which includes bed bugs and aphids[/caption]
Montgomery County health code is strict about not preventing or ridding a home of vermin[/caption]
The critters nicknamed “17 Year Locusts” even though they aren’t locusts, have been living underground and already sighted coming to the surface in Ohio and Maryland[/caption]
Preparing for the worst, the county is advising residents to think twice about setting any food out for strays and to keep bird feeders bare and also to seal pets indoors.
They are also suggesting subtracting clutter and ridding any greenery of weeds since rodents prefer to burrow under bushes and shrubs, FOX 5 reports.
Those who shirk such preventative measures and harbor rats could be found in violation of Chapter 39 of the county code: “It shall be unlawful for anyone to allow their property to be infested with rats or to be in such condition as to contribute to an existing or potential rat infestation.”
Violators are to pay for extermination and there could be a prosecution for “failure to obey” the health orders, the code reads.
The anticipation of rats descending on the county is a double whammy for communities preparing to be deluged by the emergence of the bugs.
Indeed, Montgomery County is one destination among several mostly Eastern and Southern states like New York and Georgia expecting cicadas to tunnel upward to the surface and make a racket this summer as they breed and perish above ground mostly young trees.
Insect experts say the Brood X, made up of cicada nymphs that went underground back in 2004 to nibble on tree roots, will reappear from the summer soil, to molt, mate and lay eggs.
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Around mid-May, in an amazing feat of synchronicity, their biological clocks will lead them to their final phase of life,” according to the Montgomery County Health Department’s explainer “The Cicadas Are Coming!”
Apparently, some of the cicadas jumped the gun with soil temperatures climbing to the 60s and have been spotted making fusses in Maryland and Ohio regions.
Once above-ground, the insects known to create a loud buzzing symphony as their mating ritual occurs for around four weeks.
When they have successfully mated, the female cicadas buzz off to be alone and lay small eggs in tree branches and then after two to six weeks the adult cicadas die off.
The swarm is expected to last well into June according to where “even larger masses of the red-eyed insects will emerge” according to the University of Maryland Department of Entomology.
The experts there say the cicadas, of which there are 3,400 species of cicadas exist worldwide, are harmless to both people and pets.
The university scientists say the two most common species in the US are the dog-day or annual cicada which arrive each summer and the periodical cicadas who also are known by the nickname “17-year locusts” even though they aren’t locusts.
The insects are known to serve as nourishment not only for vermin like rats but also birds and other wild animals.
They should be observed but not eliminated.
Experts warn never to “use pesticides on them.”
