You're sitting on your porch, enjoying a lukewarm lemonade, when the noise starts. It begins as a low-frequency hum and quickly escalates into a deafening, rhythmic buzz that feels like it's vibrating inside your skull. Then, out of nowhere, a three-inch-long creature with glowing red eyes and translucent wings dive-bombs your forehead. It's clumsy. It’s loud. It’s honestly a bit terrifying if you aren't expecting it. This leads to the frantic Google search that brought you here: can cicadas kill you?
The short answer is a hard no.
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Cicadas are effectively the golden retrievers of the insect world—clumsy, loud, and possessing zero ill intent. They aren't out for blood. They don't have stingers. They don't even have "teeth" in the way we think of them. But while they won't send you to the morgue, there are a few weird, niche ways they can make your life miserable or potentially pose a minor health risk if you (or your pets) aren't careful.
They Aren't After Your Blood
Unlike mosquitoes or ticks, cicadas have no interest in biting humans. They are part of the order Hemiptera, often called "true bugs." Most bugs in this category have a specialized mouthpart called a rostrum, which functions like a tiny, stiff straw. They use this straw to pierce tree bark and suck out xylem—essentially watery tree sap.
They don't want your blood. They don't want your sandwich.
Occasionally, a cicada might land on your arm and mistake you for a very fleshy tree branch. If it tries to "taste" you with its rostrum, you might feel a tiny prick. It’s not a bite, and it’s certainly not venomous. It’s just a very confused bug wondering why this "tree" is wearing sunscreen and moving around. It doesn't hurt much more than a pinprick, and it won't leave a lasting mark.
The Real Danger Is Mostly Psychological
If you have entomophobia (a fear of insects), the sheer volume of a periodical cicada emergence—like the famous Brood X—can feel like a literal nightmare. When billions of these things emerge at once, the sheer biomass is staggering. They cover sidewalks. They crunch under your shoes. They fly into your hair because they are exceptionally bad pilots.
For some, this causes genuine panic attacks or extreme stress. In that sense, the "danger" is more about your heart rate spiking because a bug the size of a chicken nugget just landed on your neck.
Why Your Dog Might Be More at Risk Than You
While humans are safe, our four-legged friends often see a cicada emergence as a free, all-you-can-eat shrimp buffet. Dogs and cats love the crunch.
Is it toxic? No. Cicadas are actually quite high in protein and low in fat. However, their exoskeletons are made of chitin. Chitin is very tough and fibrous. If a dog eats one or two, they’ll be fine. If a dog eats fifty? That’s where the trouble starts.
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The heavy, crunchy shells can cause significant gastrointestinal distress. We're talking vomiting, lethargy, and some truly unpleasant diarrhea. In rare, extreme cases, the sheer volume of undigested shells can cause a physical blockage in the digestive tract that requires a vet visit. So, while can cicadas kill you is a "no," the answer for your greedy Lab might be "it can make them very, very sick."
Pesticide Concerns
There is a secondary risk here. If you or your neighbors have sprayed heavy chemical pesticides to try (unsuccessfully) to kill the cicadas, those chemicals are now on the bugs. When your pet eats the treated insects, they are ingesting those toxins. It’s always better to just let the cicadas do their thing and keep your dog on a short leash during the peak weeks of the emergence.
The Sound: A Threat to Your Hearing?
Cicadas are the loudest insects on the planet. Some species can produce sounds exceeding 100 decibels. To put that in perspective, a lawnmower is about 90 decibels, and a live rock concert is around 110.
If you are standing directly under a tree filled with thousands of male cicadas all "singing" at once, you are exposing your ears to sound levels that can, over long periods, cause hearing damage. According to the CDC, repeated exposure to sounds at or above 85 decibels can cause hearing loss.
You aren't going to die from the noise. But if you're working outside for eight hours in the middle of a brood emergence, wearing some foam earplugs isn't a bad idea. It'll save your hearing and, more importantly, your sanity.
Could You Die From Eating One?
Believe it or not, people eat cicadas. They are often described as having a nutty, shrimp-like flavor. There are even cookbooks dedicated to them.
However, if you have a shellfish allergy, you should treat cicadas like a death trap.
Cicadas are biologically related to shrimp and lobsters. They share the same allergens. If you are someone who carries an EpiPen because a shrimp cocktail will close your throat, do not—under any circumstances—participate in the "cicada taco" trend. An anaphylactic reaction is the only realistic way a cicada could actually kill a human being.
Mercury and Soil Toxins
Another niche risk is bioaccumulation. Cicadas spend 13 or 17 years underground, sucking on tree roots. If the soil they are in is heavily contaminated with mercury or lead, those heavy metals can build up in their bodies. If you eat one, you're fine. If you decide to make them a staple of your diet for a month, you might be ingesting more than just protein.
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The Physical Hazards of Brood Emergences
There are a couple of "final destination" style scenarios where cicadas cause indirect harm.
- Car Accidents: Cicadas are attracted to the vibration of machinery. They will fly toward lawnmowers, power tools, and moving cars. If a massive bug flies through an open window and hits a driver in the face, the resulting swerve could be fatal. Keep your windows up during a heavy emergence.
- Slippery Roads: In areas with massive populations, the sheer number of dead cicadas on the road can actually create a slick surface. When their bodies are crushed by tires, they release oils and fluids that, when mixed with a light rain, make the pavement as slippery as ice. It sounds like a horror movie plot, but it’s a real thing that local DOTs sometimes have to deal with.
- Falling Branches: Female cicadas lay their eggs in the tips of young tree branches. They use an organ called an ovipositor to slice into the wood. This process, called "flagging," can cause the tips of the branches to wither and break off. On a large, healthy tree, this is just natural pruning. On a small, weakened tree overhanging a walkway, a falling dead branch could—theoretically—hit someone.
How to Coexist with the Screaming Hordes
If you're still worried about whether can cicadas kill you, just remember that they have existed for millions of years. They have one goal: find a mate, lay eggs, and die. They don't have time to mess with you.
Instead of worrying, focus on these practical steps to manage the "invasion":
- Protect Young Trees: If you just planted a sapling, wrap it in fine mesh bird netting. This prevents the females from slicing into the delicate branches to lay eggs.
- Clear Your Gutters: Dead cicadas pile up. If they get into your gutters and it rains, you’ll end up with a backed-up mess and a very smelly "bug soup" overflowing onto your foundation.
- Check Your Pool: Cicadas are terrible swimmers. They will clog your skimmer baskets in a matter of hours. Check them twice a day during the peak of the season.
- Yard Work Timing: Since they are attracted to the vibrations of engines, try to mow your lawn in the early morning or late evening when the temperature is cooler. Cicadas are less active when it isn't blazing hot.
Final Verdict
Cicadas are a nuisance, not a threat. They are a marvel of biology—creatures that stay underground for nearly two decades just to come out and party for a few weeks. They don't sting, they don't bite to defend themselves, and they aren't carrying diseases like West Nile or Lyme.
Unless you are a small tree or someone with a severe shrimp allergy, you have absolutely nothing to fear. Wear some headphones, keep your mouth shut while riding a bike, and try to appreciate the weird, loud spectacle of it all. It only happens a few times a century, after all.
Actionable Steps for the Next Emergence
- Download a Tracking App: Use something like "Cicada Safari" to see when the brood is hitting your specific neighborhood. Knowing is half the battle.
- Pet Supervision: Keep an eye on your dogs. A few "sky raisins" are fine; a bucketful is a vet bill.
- Ear Protection: If the decibel level in your yard hits that "chainsaw" volume, grab some noise-canceling headphones before doing yard work.
- Avoid Pesticides: Don't waste money on chemicals. Cicadas are too numerous for sprays to work, and you'll just end up poisoning the birds and squirrels that are trying to help you by eating the bugs.
The buzzing will eventually stop. The "corpses" will melt back into the soil as fertilizer. And you'll be perfectly fine.