Broods

Magicicada broods and distributions

Although nearly all of the periodical cicadas in a given region emerge in the same year, the cicadas in different regions are not synchronized and may emerge in different years. All periodical cicadas of the same life cycle type that emerge in a given year are known collectively as a single “brood” (or “year-class”). The resulting broods are designated by Roman numerals — there are 12 broods of 17-year cicadas (with the remaining five year-classes apparently containing no cicadas), and three broods of 13-year cicadas (with ten empty year-classes). As a result, it is possible to find adult periodical cicadas in almost any year by traveling to the appropriate location.

All periodical cicada broods

Straggling and spurious broods

Sometimes periodical cicadas emerge “off-schedule” by one or more years. This phenomenon is often referred to by the general term “straggling,” although straggling cicadas can emerge either later or earlier than expected. Straggling makes it difficult to construct accurate maps of periodical cicada brood distributions, and historical reports of emergences often contain little or no information about how many cicadas were seen. Straggling emergences in which only a few cicadas are present are common, but larger unexpected emergences of thousands of individuals have also been reported. Stragglers are almost certainly responsible for reports of “spurious broods” that are not generally recognized. For more information about stragglers, see this page.

Brood Origins

Periodical cicada broods fit together like puzzle pieces, in both time and space. Broods are neither species nor are they populations; they are best described as regional, multispecies groupings of periodical cicadas that emerge on a common schedule. Broods may have complex histories, exemplified by the fact that some broods have geographically separated disjuncts. More subtly, the different species found in any given brood may also have separate evolutionary histories and may have joined the brood at different times or from different sources. The video below describes one simple hypothesis for brood formation drive by climate shocks and temporary life cycle anomalies.

 

Guide to Periodical Cicada Broods

17-year Broods Year

General region

I Shenandoah Brood 1978 1995 2012 2029 TN, VA, WV
II East Coast Brood 1979 1996 2013 2030 CT, GA, MD, NC, NJ, NY, OK, PA, SC, VA
III Iowan Brood 1980 1997 2014 2031 IA, IL, MO
IV Kansan Brood 1981 1998 2015 2032 IA, KS, MO, NE, OK, TX
V 1982 1999 2016 2033 MD, OH, PA, VA, WV
VI Brushy Mountains Brood 1983 2000 2017 2034 GA, NC, SC
VII Onondaga Brood 1984 2001 2018 2035 NY
VIII 1985 2002 2019 2036 OH, PA, WV
IX 1986 2003 2020 2037 NC, VA, WV
X Great Eastern Brood 1987 2004 2021 2038 DE, GA, IL, IN, KY, MD, MI, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, TN, VA, WV
XI 1937 1954 Extinct CT
XII Spurious
XIII Northern Illinois Brood 1973 1990 2007 2024 IA, IL, IN, WI
XIV 1974 1991 2008 2025 KY, GA, IN, MA, MD, NC, NJ, NY, OH, PA, TN, VA, WV
XV Spurious
XVI Spurious
XVII Spurious

13-year Broods

XVIII Spurious
XIX Great Southern Brood 1985 1998 2011 2024 AL, AR, GA, IN, IL, KY, LA, MD, MO, MS, NC, OK, SC, TN, VA
XX Spurious
XXI 1870 Extinct FL
XXII Baton Rouge Brood 1988 2001 2014 2027 LA, MS, OH, KY
XXIII Lower Mississippi Brood 1989 2002 2015 2028 AR, IL, IN, KY, LA, MO, MS, TN
XXIV Spurious
XXVII Spurious
XXIX Spurious
XXX Spurious