The Countdown to the Cicadas is down to about a week in Michiana, and there are still a lot of misconceptions about what they are and what they do.

First, the only real threat they pose is to young trees and shrubs.

They feed off the sap in the tree roots that can harm plants that aren’t very old. They aren’t interested in your garden or your flowers, and they won’t hurt you or any other animals.

We could see a boost in the caterpillar population as its predators choose to eat the cicadas instead.

The only real impact the big bugs have on humans is the noise.