Sandusky county 2016 brood v summary
AN EXCITING FIND/CONFIRMATION
A SMALL MAGICICADA COLONY THOUGHT TO BE LONG EXTINCT:
LOCATION: Sandusky County
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1st: Today, I confirmed a suspicion of mine which started 17 years ago. Back in 1999, I discovered small woodlands along East County Road 62/113 in Sandusky County. This woodland is just north of the Seneca County line where I located a small colony of individual Magicicada cassini singing. This woodland is positioned between State Route 269 and County Road 29/308. At the time, the area was posted as "no trespassing" and I failed to confirm whether or not the insects had emerged there and if their numbers were large enough to survive predation and sustain their existence.
On this date, I was happy to find the same woods still intact and again, I heard a small colony of M. cassini singing. Upon closer inspection, I found an exuvia clinging to a utility pole (Pole # 5218C4-15) next to a few individuals perched and singing in the nearby trees. This confirmed that 17 year cicadas still exist in Sandusky County which is another county NOT traditionally listed in the Brood V maps/areas. They may be only found in the extreme south-east corner of Sandusky County, but nonetheless, they are there.
This also verifies and reaffirms records from OHIO Agricultural Experiment Station Bulletin 311 printed in 1917, where it reported a small colony in this same area a century ago. The colony had luckily survived into our modern day. My finding has been reported to other institutions in hopes to further update the accuracy of the existing Brood V maps.
I should further note that I assisted in the mapping of Seneca County 17 years ago which too was excluded in most (all) of the Brood V mapping charts back then. Many of those colonies in Seneca County were also listed in the same Ohio bulletin whose map was printed on page 568.
Also on this date, I hear a solitary male M. cassini in Green Creek Township near the entrance to the Mid-City Mobile Home Park located on County Road 212. Due to the location, I dismiss the sound thinking I made an error.
FRIDAY, JUNE 3rd: At approximately 1600 hours, I hear the calls of about 3 male M. cassini inside the Mid-City Mobile Home Park near the north-west corner of the property. There is an old tree line located to the west of the property and the calls are heard randomly. I further inspect this old tree line which has several large oak trees. I locate 8 exuviae on some leaves, garden plants, and tall grasses.
At the time of this writing, I am unable to locate any historical documentation of Brood V existing in these parts. However, Brood X was listed in the Fremont area over a century ago which this portion of Green Creek Township is listed under a Fremont mailing address. Like the small colony on County Road 62, is this a relic population of a once larger colony or stragglers from another Brood waiting to emerge? It may be many more years before again I am able to verify this and also leads to another question... Will their small numbers be enough to sustain a continuous thriving population?
SUNDAY, JUNE 5th: A single teneral male M. cassini is found in the western tree line near an oak tree with deformed wings. This gave me visual confirmation there is a small isolated relict population in the Mid-City Trailer Park.