They're gross, they're loud, and they're about to take over Indiana.
They're cicadas.
Millions of the bugs are expected to emerge from the ground when soil temperatures reach 64 degrees. Experts say that will likely happen in May, but cicadas can show up as early as late April, the Indy Star reported.
After living underground for 17 years, these cicadas (known as Brood X) will crawl out of the dirt to find a mate. Male cicadas like to "sing" to female cicadas, which "click" back. To humans, these love songs sound like high-pitched humming or buzzing.
“It sounds almost like a UFO. It’s this otherworldly sound," Marten Edwards, a biology professor at Muhlenberg College, told the paper.
Male cicadas will die shortly after mating, while the females will lay up to 600 eggs before passing. The larva will eventually hatch and burrow back into the ground as the live cycle begins again.
Luckily for humans, the cicadas mean no harm.
“The good news is that they really don’t harm people at all. They can only suck plant sap, they can’t bite you, they won’t scratch you. So they aren’t a harm to human health at all,” Clifford Sadof, professor of entomology at Purdue University, told WANE.
The cicadas' humming is annoying though. The bugs are most active in the middle of the day so picking another time to be outside can help you avoid the sound.
Cicadas will generally leave pets alone, too. They aren't poisonous, but cats and dogs can have an upset stomach if they eat too many of the bugs.
Photo: Getty Images