Wisconsin
Cicadas making historical appearance in Wisconsin
APPLETON, Wis. (WBAY) – Rare cicadas are starting to emerge across the country. You have a chance to check out this historical moment with two periodic broods coming out at the same time — but it won’t be easy.
Scientists report billions of cicadas will emerge. Some are calling it “Cicada-geddon” or “cicada-palooza.”
“It’s a strange phenomenon,” UW-Green Bay Professor Michael Draney explained. “There’s three thousand species of cicadas on the planet but there’s only seven of these periodic cicadas that live in Eastern North America.”
Bad news for bug lovers in Northeast Wisconsin. You have to travel to the very southern part of our state — south of Milwaukee and Madison — to see what’s called the Northern Illinois brood.
The Northern Illinois brood only comes out every 17 years. For the Great Southern brood, it emerges every 13 years.
“The clock ticks and they’re like, ‘Hey, it’s time to become an adult!’ They crawl out at sunset. They climb out of their baby shell. Their wings inflate. The next day you see cicadas!” Professor Draney said.
Both are popping out at the same time for the first time since 1803. For perspective, Thomas Jefferson was president; that’s the year he purchased the Louisiana Territory.
Draney said cicadas are basically trying to avoid predators by coming out all at once.
“The adults are kind of helpless against predators… if they just kind of came out every year they’d probably just get eaten but when they all come out all at once every 13 years it takes the predators by surprise and some of them survive.”
In our neighborhoods, Draney told Action 2 News it’s going to seem like a usual cicada summer.
“We do have cicadas in this area but they mostly actually emerge later in the summer. As you know, in August is when you hear the noise but it’s a different genus, different species, and it’s not happening here for us,” Draney said.
If you’re really interested, there are a few sweet locations around Illinois where both periodic cicadas are coming out at the same time.
“If it’s a good spot you can get thousands and thousands of these coming out in your backyard. Millions per acre. It can be really dramatic. It can make the roads slippery. It can be a real thing. Still, it’s very spotty.”
Just keep the pets at home.
“You have to actually be careful. Pet dogs can get a taste for cicadas, and they can get very sick because the shells of the cicadas — the exoskeletons — can cause a blockage if they eat way too many of them,” Draney explained.
Draney said the peak is likely the middle of this month into June, so the clock is ticking if you want to make the trek to check out this rare cicada emergence.
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A Safe Haven Baby Box has been purchased for Wisconsin Rapids. The next step is choosing the best alarm system for the project before it can be installed.
WISCONSIN RAPIDS − The city is close to having a Safe Haven Baby Box installed to help protect babies who are unwanted or unable to be cared for by their parents.
Volunteers have raised $35,000 for the Safe Haven Baby Box project and spent about $17,000 to pay for the box. The remainder will help to cover the cost of an alarm system and installation of the box in Wisconsin Rapids’ Fire Station 2, 1641 W. Grand Ave.
Safe Haven Baby Boxes are secure, temperature-controlled, ventilated boxes that provide a place to anonymously put a newborn baby the mother can not or does not want to keep.
The project currently is waiting on the selection of an alarm system, said Linda Casper, who has led the efforts to get a Baby Box. Wisconsin Rapids Fire Chief Benjamin Goodreau is researching what system would be the best and most cost effective, Casper said. The alarm will alert the Wood County Communications Center when the box is opened. A delayed alarm then sounds after the baby is placed in the box and it is closed. The second alarm is delayed to allow the person dropping off the baby time to leave the area, Casper said.
Casper said she learned about the Baby Box when she was reading a newsletter from a state organization she and her husband belong to and found an article about the Safe Haven Baby Box. Casper thought it was a good idea for Wisconsin Rapids and contacted Wisconsin Rapids City Council member Jeff Penzkover about it. After discussions about a location that would work for the Baby Box, it was decided to place it at Wisconsin Rapids Fire Station 2.
Once the alarm system is chosen, Altmann Construction will begin the process of installing the box, Casper said. The installation will require removing bricks from the outside wall of the fire station. Before the box can be put into service, the firefighters and some members of the Wood County Sheriff’s Office will have to be trained on the correct protocols for handling a baby being left in the box, Casper said. Fire Department administration also will have to adjust the protocols to fit the department, she said.
Since the efforts to get a Baby Box in Wisconsin Rapids have become known, Casper has been getting phone calls from people in other communities, including Marshfield and Wausau, who want to know how she got the project going.
How you can help
Although the initial cost of the Baby Box is covered, Casper and the other people who have worked to bring the lifesaving device to Wisconsin Rapids still are working on raising more money. The box will need to be inspected each year by Safe Haven and the alarm system will have a monthly fee, Casper said. She hopes to raise enough to cover the costs for years to come.
People interested in helping can send donations to: Sts. Peter and Paul Catholic Church, 1150 Second St. N., Wisconsin Rapids, WI 54494. Please put “SHBB,” for Safe Haven Baby Box, on the memo line so church staff know where the money should go.
Contact Karen Madden at kmadden@gannett.com. Follow her on Twitter @KMadden715, Instagram @kmadden715 or Facebook at www.facebook.com/karen.madden.33.
Spring practice has wrapped up across the country, and college football has officially entered its quiet period of summer doldrums.
However, the mass influx of new intel on transfers gleaned from spring ball means top recruiting sites 247Sports and On3/Rivals have updated their national transfer portal rankings, and the Badgers’ class has gained more respect from both services since the initial transfer boom in the winter.
Wisconsin’s 2026 transfer haul currently checks in at No. 15 in the country on On3/Rivals, up slightly from its perch at No. 18 this winter. That’s good enough for third in the Big Ten behind UCLA (No. 11) and Indiana (No. 1).
247Sports sees the Badgers’ class a little differently; they’ve awarded Wisconsin with the No. 38-ranked class in the nation. That checks in at ninth in the Big Ten. Still, the outlet has bumped its individual ratings for several of the Badgers’ incoming transfers.
After initially not having signed a four-star transfer portal prospect in the eyes of 247Sports, the site has bumped quarterback Colton Joseph, running back Abu Sama and safety Marvin Burks Jr. to four-star transfer prospects, giving the Badgers three blue-chip portal players. Center Austin Kawecki was also bumped to a high three-star portal prospect.
On3, meanwhile, sees Wisconsin with just one four-star portal prospect in the Iowa State transfer tailback Sama.
It’s interesting to note that On3’s transfer portal grading system evaluates all of Wisconsin’s portal movement, additions and departures combined. 247Sports’ system is less additive and only evaluates teams based on how it ranks their newcomers.
Why it matters
In this day and age, programs have no choice but to deftly navigate the transfer portal if they want any shot at success. That doesn’t always mean you need to add over 30 signees, like Wisconsin did, but it’s a good sign that the Badgers are gaining recognition for one of the most important aspects of roster building.
Wisconsin is going to be a team largely fueled by mercenaries this season. I’d expect the vast majority of the Badgers’ production, especially on offense where new faces at quarterback, running back, tight end and receiver figure to dominate reps.
The Badgers still have a solid core of home-grown players, namely their two studs at inside linebacker and a handful of key cogs along the offensive line. After all, they rank 35th nationally in returning production; the cupboard isn’t entirely bare.
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