This is the year of the emergence of the Brood X Cicadas. They come out once every 17 years. Except for a few weeks every 17 years, the cicadas are down in the ground living off sap from trees.

Then it happens, they emerge, with one goal in mind--- SEX. The female lays her eggs and the cycle starts all over again, for them to emerge 17 years later.

When they emerge, they crawl out of their holes in the ground at night. They shed their skin and wait for day break. The males gather at the tops of the trees and make a huge racket trying to attract the females. They mate, the male dies and the female lays her eggs and dies.

This is a video of the emergence cycle.