As students leave for summer vacation, swarms of noisy, orange-and-black creatures will be making their cyclic return to campus for a brief stay before disappearing again.
They're not alumni coming back for Reunions; they're a type of cicadas that emerge from underground once every 17 years.
Unlike the green cicadas that appear every July, periodical cicadas live in the soil as nymphs for 17 years before burrowing through to the surface.
Trillions are expected to cover most of the eastern region of North America beginning in late May and are expected to reach densities of up to 40,000 per acre.
Notorious for their overwhelming number and constant singing, the cicadas, which can grow to two inches in length, will be in full force during Reunions and Commencement this year — just as they were in 1987 and 1970.
"You literally had to shout to talk to people even if you were walking next to them," recalled John Loose '70. "And it was like walking on popcorn, with these crunchy shells everywhere."
The first few cicadas of the year surfaced earlier this week, but the masses will likely not appear until after students leave.
Triggered by the ground temperature reaching 64 degrees, the cicadas emerge within days of each other.
During their two- to six-week adult lives, they woo each other with song, mate and lay eggs in trees. The branches fall off, and the eggs hatch underground to restart the life cycle.
The University will not spray pesticides to combat the cicadas, but plans to use streetsweepers to clear away the dead bodies, said Grounds Manager Jim Consolloy.
In the interest of science
But a few are eagerly awaiting the emergence of the cicadas this year.
Uta Oberdoerster '05, an ecology and evolutionary biology major, found herself fascinated when she learned about the creatures at a seminar this fall and decided to do her junior paper and senior thesis work on them.
Oberdoerster will spend May and June on campus, determining which types of trees the cicadas prefer, the sound levels in various areas on campus and the habits of their predators.
Meanwhile, Marian Bihrle '05 is planning to use radiotransmitters to track the migration of the creatures during their life cycle.
Martin Wikelski, an assistant professor in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology who is supervising Bihrle's work, sees the phenomenon as a unique opportunity.
"People should really enjoy this because it's one of the most amazing spectacles in nature," he said. "They shouldn't be annoyed by the sound; they should see it as volcanic outbreak that only happens every so often. It's part of what makes this area of the world special."
Graduation memories
For the Class of 2004, the 17-year cicadas could make for an especially memorable graduation.
Gregg Lange '70 described his Commencement, set in the midst of the Vietnam War, as "a mess and a half." It took place a month after the Kent State shootings, and students had boycotted final exams and traded their caps and gowns for white armbands.
The masses of cicadas added to the intensity. Their constant drone drowned out the commencement speakers and they "crawled all over everybody's mother in the senior class," Lange said.
Bob Dylan, on campus to accept an honorary degree, was so disturbed by the noise that he wanted to leave the processional.
After being convinced to stay by Neil Rudenstine '56, then dean of undergraduate students, Dylan wrote "The Day of the Locusts" based on the experience.
"It was eerie," said Loose, who is looking forward to his 34th reunion this month. "It was like the twilight zone."
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