Southwest
The cicada invasion has begun! Find out where the flying insects are emerging
The historic cicada invasion is upon us!
Noisy flying insects known as cicadas have begun emerging from the ground and have been spotted buzzing around North Carolina and South Carolina before they will eventually appear across 15 other states.
The one to two-inch-long bugs are rising from the soil and growing wings before they then start a frantic mating frenzy lasting several weeks.
Billions, if not trillions, of two groups of cicadas will appear in 17 U.S. states over the coming months in a rare natural phenomenon not seen since 1803.
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It is the first time in 221 years that two types of cicadas — brood XIX and XIII — have risen from the ground at the same time, back when Thomas Jefferson was president, and it is not expected to happen again until 2244.
The bugs possess sturdy bodies, bulging compounded red eyes and membranous wings with a three-inch wingspan.
The two broods together will span parts of 17 states: Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia and Wisconsin, according to the United States Forest Service.
Newly released video shows swarms of cicadas climbing up a tree, while in other footage the insects can be seen flying under the lights of a canopy, swarming a nearby wall and crawling on the ground.
“It is a pretty amazing phenomenon, I mean, it’s unique,” Eric Benson, a professor emeritus and extension entomologist at Clemson University in South Carolina, told Fox News Digital last month.
“They’re one of the longest-lived insects that we know and the fact that a bug can be underground for 13 years or 17 years, and then almost at the exact same time, they all come out of the ground synchronized,” Benson said. “It’s amazing to me. It’s one of nature’s cooler phenomena in the world.”
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There are around 190 species of cicadas all over the world, but only in the eastern United States can you find the periodical cicadas, which emerge every 13 or 17 years.
Cicadas are not harmful to humans, pets, household gardens or crops, the EPA says. They are also a valuable food source for birds and mammals.
According to one social media video, turkeys have been feasting on cicadas. The video, posted on X, shows a dead turkey with its crop cut open, revealing at least a dozen cicadas that the bird had been gobbling up.
“Even back in history, Native Americans ate cicadas because all of a sudden you’re provided with all this amazing protein falling in your lap,” Benson said.
The busiest period of activity for cicadas is from now through early June, and they usually appear after a nice soaking of rain when the temperature of the ground hits 64 degrees, Benson explained.
“They’ll crawl up on a surface, usually the trunk of a tree, or it could be on the side of your house, a car, a fence or whatever. They’re insects, so they have to shed their skin to get to the next stage, and they will go through their final molt where they pull out of their immature skin, and they will be in their adult skin, which will have wings,” Benson said.
“They’ll molt, expand their wings, harden up and when they’re ready they’ll fly up into the trees.”
He said that eventually the cicadas will mate in a noisy fashion and then the females will deposit their eggs onto tree branches. They will hatch and fall into the ground where they will stay for the next 13 or 17 years before the process repeats.
So many cicadas will make noise at once in some places that sound levels might reach upward of 90 to 120 decibels, equivalent to a gas-powered lawnmower or motorcycle, the U.S. Forest Service says.
Meanwhile, the mating cicadas will die off and homeowners will be left hoping that the dead carcasses do not land in their gardens as they can smell badly if they die in large numbers together.
Females laying their eggs on small tree branches can harm young trees and the EPA advises covering maturing saplings in mesh or netting to keep the insects out.
Experts also advise homeowners to cover pools, patio furniture or similar items from cicada or their droppings when they are active.
Brood XIII cicadas appear on a 17-year cycle, and are restricted mostly to northern Illinois, eastern Iowa, southern Wisconsin and a few counties in extreme northwestern Indiana, according to entomologist Floyd Shockley of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of Natural History in Washington.
Brood XIX emerges on a slightly shorter 13-year cycle, and are widely distributed from Alabama, Arkansas, Georgia, Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maryland, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee and Virginia – a total of 15 states, according to Shockley. The two broods together span parts of 17 states.
These two broods overlap only in a small area in central Illinois and sometimes in Indiana. They are close enough potentially to have some interbreeding between broods.
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Southwest
Paralyzed cat in Texas up for adoption seeks 'her person' for cuddles and care
A 3-year-old Turkish Angora cat with some special needs is seeking a special person or persons to take her into their home for a lifetime of cuddles and cozy cat naps.
At her young age, the cat named Shrimp has proven herself to be a survivor. She sustained a spinal cord injury in Dec. 2022 after she fell down three stories, Madison Ohler, founder of Wonky Whiskers Rescue, told Fox News Digital.
Wonky Whiskers Rescue is a central Texas-based nonprofit that focuses on rescuing cats with serious injuries, disabilities and illness.
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“She underwent an extensive amount of testing and therapy, but Shrimp never regained function of her back legs,” Ohler said.
The cat sometimes uses a wheelchair, but she is also capable of “scooting” (and even climbing) around on her own.
Her past owner surrendered her to Wonky Whiskers Rescue in June 2023, said Ohler. The rescue is hoping the cat will find her forever home before she reaches her one-year mark at the rescue.
And despite her extremely traumatic injury, “Shrimp is happy and healthy” — and only requires a little more care than a typical cat.
“She requires her bladder to be expressed three times a day,” said Ohler, which she said is a “simple process and takes only a couple of minutes.”
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Other than that, Shrimp is a fairly normal cat, with soft fur and a penchant for snuggling and lounging, the rescue said.
She is also on the petite side, weighing just eight pounds.
She “loves Churu treats, cozy beds and getting endless cuddles from her person,” said Ohler, describing her as a “cuddle bug.”
Cats with paralysis and other special needs may seem intimidating to many potential adopters, she noted.
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“I think it is important for people who have not had experience with paralyzed cats to be open to adopting them,” said Ohler.
But she said she believes that “once a routine is established, it is quick and easy.”
“Paralyzed cats surprise us with how resilient and capable they are. The bond a paralyzed cat has with their person is extraordinary,” she said.
“It is incredibly rewarding to be a part of their journey.”
Anyone looking to bring a cuddly little Shrimp into their home should contact Wonky Whiskers Rescue, either on Facebook or on the group’s website.
Shrimp is up-to-date on her shots and other medical care, and her adoption fee is waived, said Ohler.
But due to her needs, Wonky Whiskers Rescue does require that Shrimp’s adopter meet her beforehand to receive instructions on her care.
For more Lifestyle articles, visit www.foxnews.com/lifestyle.
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Los Angeles, Ca
Where to feel like you're in Netflix's Ripley… right here in L.A.
KTLA’s Andy Riesmeyer has been binging Ripley on Netflix… and he’s so into it, he wanted to see if he could eat, drink and experience a life just like the show’s 1960’s Italy setting… right here in Los Angeles. Join us on this vibe trip…. it’s fun! Though it’s not much cheaper than therapy.
Featured in this segment:
Paul Feinstein, Author of Italy Cocktails An Elegant Collection of Over 100 Recipes Inspired by Italia
Locations:
- Hollywood High Tower, Hollywood Hills
- Dante at The Maybourne hotel, Beverly Hills
- Stella in West Hollywood
- The Getty Center and The Getty Villa
Live, local news from L.A.’s Very Own, KTLA 5
Southwest
House committee demands Biden agency staff reveal travel history amid electioneering claims
EXCLUSIVE: Republican leaders in the House and Senate sent a joint letter Thursday morning to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) demanding travel schedules, official calendars and other documents from the cabinet agency amid allegations it is involved in partisan voter registration outreach in key swing states like Michigan.
Republican Rep. Roger Williams of Texas and Republican Sen. Joni Ernst of Iowa demanded the SBA comply with congressional oversight on the matter, which has also led to at least one Freedom of Information Act lawsuit from a government watchdog earlier this week.
The letter focused on allegations from Williams that the SBA is shirking its responsibility to “Main Street” in favor of helping register voters in Democratic areas of Michigan such as Detroit and Saginaw, while obstructing his panel’s constitutionally-sanctioned oversight of the activities of the cabinet agency.
“The SBA has shown a serious lack of transparency regarding the travels of senior SBA officials, including Administrator Guzman,” Williams said.
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“Main Street – and the American People – have a right to know what exactly is going on and how the SBA is spending their hard-earned tax dollars. I hope the SBA will be forthcoming with us and provide us with the requested documents as we continue our investigation into this matter.”
Ernst echoed Williams, saying in a statement obtained by Fox News Digital that the Biden administration agency has “no business pushing a partisan agenda on taxpayers’ dime.”
Ernst said the federal government should help struggling small businesses in the Biden economy, and that “open[ing] the books” is overdue for transparency’s sake.
The letter cited a reported April 17 video that alleged SBA administrator Isabella Casillas Guzman was the “most traveled member of the president’s cabinet and participated in trips to indirectly campaign for the president.”
Williams and Ernst said after they viewed the video, they began investigating the accuracy of the statements, and preliminarily corroborated the claim.
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“Specifically, these press releases indicated that you have traveled to critical battleground states for the upcoming election, including Michigan, and invited Democrat members of Congress on these trips nearly eight times more frequently than Republican members,” Williams and Ernst wrote. “On April 24, 2024, the Senate Committee sent a letter requesting your calendar, records of your travel, and White House communications.”
“To date, you have failed to respond.”
Williams’ office told Fox News that after they viewed the reported video, Ernst’s committee sent the agency a letter on the matter which they said never received a response as of this week. The Texas Republican’s office added they have since not seen any further public statements about SBA trips to campaign events following the inquiry.
In the letter, the lawmakers demand calendars for Casillas Guzman and several other SBA officials, as well as past and future travel plans for them.
The lawmakers stated Williams’ committee has authority to demand such documentation under House Rule X, and the Senate panel under Senate Rule XXV S.1.
On Friday, the Heritage Foundation and its Oversight Project executive director Mike Howell sued the agency, alleging it failed to comply with legal public records requests for the “Memorandum of Understanding” announced earlier this year and forged between the SBA and Michigan Department of State with a 2021 executive order being the keystone of the coordination.
The Oversight Project’s lawsuit alleged the SBA did not provide documents sought under an April 23 Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) request relating to the memo, which included internal communications with the search terms “register,” “vote,” “voter” and “ballot.”
In March, the SBA announced its “first-ever” voter registration agreement with the Michigan agency. On May 7, Williams’ committee issued a rare subpoena for SBA aides after what the panel claimed was in part a failure to forward documents relating to a program “diverting [agency] resources away from assisting Main Street” toward partisan ends.
When reached for comment on the lawsuit, the top Democrat on Williams’ panel, Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., expressed dismay at the subpoenas her committee recently issued, telling Fox News Digital in a statement that her committee has otherwise “prided itself in bipartisan cooperation to help American entrepreneurs.”
“Unfortunately, with [these] subpoenas, Republicans have rejected these principles to pursue a partisan inquiry,” Velazquez said.
A message left for Michigan Secretary of State Jocelyn Benson’s office on Wednesday in response to the earlier report was not returned by press time. Reached by phone, the SBA said in regard to the related suit it does not comment on ongoing legal matters.
Read the full article from Here
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