Comments on: Do cicadas bite or sting?

By: rochelle jarvis-cloutier

rochelle jarvis-cloutier — Tue, 13 Sep 2011 23:24:32 +0000

Last night while sitting by a bonfire at dusk, a cicada flew into and got tangled in my hair. As I frantically tried to untangle it, it bite/or stung me in the forehead-it felt like a bee sting, or having gotten into itch weed, that stings! I didn’t see it actually, but felt it-and being I’ve handled many before w/no problem-I didn’t expect the painful stinging sensation. It got untangled and flew off without me seeing it, all I heard before and after was the fast whirring of wings like a hummingbird when they get close. It for sure did something, as it hurt for a few hrs., and then I developed a very painful headache on that side, even my jaw and teeth hurt on that side like when you have a sinus infection. Idk, but maybe when they spazz out from being held captive in tangled hair they pull out the big guns. I’m here to tell you that they do inflict much pain.

By: Lisa

Lisa — Wed, 31 Aug 2011 03:32:13 +0000

I live in Florida and they drive me nuts! My cats LOVE to catch these things, bring them in the house and play with them until they no longer buzz lol…Tonight, one of the cats came in with one hanging out of his mouth, played with it for 15-20 minutes, and then ate it, ick. I noticed him limping, which was why I was wondering if they bite. Guess he must have gotten poked! Good to know though! Thanks for the info everyone!

By: Ami

Ami — Sat, 27 Aug 2011 03:09:18 +0000

I had a very similar experience to MaryAnn. I live in central Alabama. On the evening of august 24, a bug kept hitting my patio door with gusto. It sounded like it was really trying to get inside. I turned on the patio light to see what was making all of the racket, but didn’t see what it was….just something big and black. Later, after the noise had settled down, I opened the door to see a large (thumb sized) black bug with a hard shell on the door mat. I kicked it with my shoe to get it off the rug. The thing literally made a screaming “eee,eee,eee” noise. It sounded like a human or animal….I swear to it. It startled me so much, I scream, too, and slammed the door shut. I wish I had captured it and taken a picture. The next morning, it was gone. I thought it might have been a baby bat (except it had a hard shell) or a large beetle…I didn’t see any wings. FREAKY!

By: MaryAnn

MaryAnn — Wed, 24 Aug 2011 02:56:58 +0000

I don’t care if the thing tries to eat me because it thinks I’m a tree, or if it bites, or if it tries to fight me because it thinks I’m a giant competetive male! Does it matter WHY it attacks you? :) It’s a giant, screaming bug that is attacking you! I went outside last night to check out what was banging against my window when all of a sudden a giant bug divebombed me sounding like it was screaming. My husband thought it was a bat, I didn’t know what to think at first, but I screamed like a little girl and ran! I thought it was a locust, but now I realize it must have been a cicada. There’s nothing else it could have been and no reason to make this up (not like I’m googling screaming bugs for the heck of it)lol. And seriously, if the thing can pierce a TREE, I’m pretty sure it can pierce SKIN and I bet that would hurt! My experience was exciting to say the least, especially after it kept attacking the front door. Oh, and I wasn’t using any lawn equipment, and I didn’t speak or anything when I went outside to see what was making the noise against the window, and I’m 99% sure the thing saw me and then dived in my direction. It turned away from the window and flew towards me!

By: Dan

Dan — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 11:42:46 +0000

Try using a light source to lure it out.

By: John

John — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 07:12:29 +0000

I have a cicada stuck in my home in a crawl space I cannot reach. Any ideas on how to lure it out? The noise it makes at night while trying to sleep is horrible.

By: Lindsey

Lindsey — Tue, 02 Aug 2011 03:10:32 +0000

I found a cicada about 10 minuites ago and I thought it was stining me, but apparently it thought I was a tree.

By: Dan

Dan — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 12:35:27 +0000

Use a pillow case, but remove the cicada before you go to sleep tonight.

By: Jess

Jess — Tue, 19 Jul 2011 04:41:04 +0000

One flew into my house today…It landed in the sink. It’s trapped there now, but I’m terrified of them. What’s the best way to capture and get it back outside?

By: Dan

Dan — Fri, 17 Jun 2011 18:12:54 +0000

Don’t worry. They’re not so bad.