KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Soon, a brood of cicadas will emerge from the ground and make some parts of East Tennessee pretty noisy to be in. They're expected to mostly emerge in the southern parts of the region, in counties like Monroe County, McMinn County and Loudon County.
They are not expected in Blount County and Knox County, and the emergence is not expected to be the same kind of "explosion" seen to the northwest or something that will rival the 17-year cicadas East Tennessee saw in 2021 and 2004 with Brood X.
It's known as Brood XIX and is expected to emerge after a 13-year developmental time period.
"It is going to be, like, a million per acre — that is what it is predicted to be," said Midhula Gireesh, an assistant professor of entomology at the University of Tennessee. "We don't recommend spraying. If they are concerned about any valuable young trees, very young trees that need to be protected, they can use netting."
The brood is mostly expected to emerge in Middle Tennessee and in areas of Chattanooga. If you hate bugs but love the Music City, then perhaps you should plan on visiting Nashville later in the summer this year after the cicadas stop swarming.
However, some people are looking forward to the emergence.
"I love it, just part of nature. Just like spiders are good, I think all insects have some type of mission," said Dottie Berry, a Blount County resident and cicada enthusiast. "It's something great, it's a phenomenal thing. And, the kids can enjoy and learn a lot, because you need to wait another 13 years to witness it again."