I've found the Cicadas!

I've found the Cicadas! And they're at the Columbus area metro parks.

I was quite sceptical. Everyone said they were coming, and I waited, and waited, and heard....nothing. You see, I live in a newer community, which was once farmland until about 6 years ago. But, we are very close to a quarry, which has clearly been around for years. We have lots of wildlife near our home. Every nice day you can go out and see large predator birds soaring over homes, sweeping back in circles towards the quarry to hunt their prey. So, I theorized that the quarry might have cicadas. I'm guessing I was wrong because I haven't heard jack or shit of any kind of cicada.

But today Lori and I found them! Of course forgetting all about Cicadas we went to the Battelle Darby-Creek Metro Park, which is a short 10-15 minute drive from our home. It offers lots of hiking, canoeing, and all kinds of activities, not to mention some really pretty creeks. Anyway, we get there, and we begin to hear them.

It was odd, as outside the park is nothing but farm land. Farms as far as the eye can see. But when you turn into the park, you enter thick woods, and you just heard this eerie pitched signing of the cicadas. It's similar to what you hear from the annual cicadas, except you multiply it by 100,000. I'd liken it to crowd noise at a ballgame. Two people whoop and holler, and it sounds like a couple of drunks. Get 100 people, and you can't really tell what people are saying, but you can make one or two things out. Get 10,000 together and you can't understand a thing anyone is saying, but it sounds the same...a roar of sound.

That's what this was like, except it was bugs. We got out of the car, and you could see them flying around in the trees, and could make out their wings. They're pretty slow and dumb, but that's why they figured out that they need to burrow in the ground for 17 years before they come back out...that keeps the predators away.

We didn't stay long, and I didn't really want to go hiking with these bugs batting into me....so we went to the heritage trail and walked it instead. But I'm happy I ran into them, because I would have been upset to have missed it...it really is a sight to see.