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Daily Bread for 6.24.24: The Latest Strange, Bad Idea is Harvesting Cicadas

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Good morning.

Monday in Whitewater will be sunny with a high of 83. Sunrise is 5:17 and sunset 8:37 for 15h 19m 42s of daytime. The moon is a waning gibbous with 92.2 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Urban Forestry Commission meets at 4:30 PM. The Whitewater School Board goes into closed session shortly after 5:15 PM, and returns to open session at 7 PM.

On this day in 1948, the Berlin Blockade begins as the Soviet Union makes overland travel between West Germany and West Berlin impossible.

It wouldn’t occur to a sensible person to remove large numbers of periodic cicadas from a Wisconsin state park, thereby interrupting their natural lifecycle. The report seems too odd to be accurate, and yet, these are odd times. On Sunday, the Wisconsin DNR issued a press release warning against cicada harvesting:

MADISON, Wis. – Following multiple reports of people harvesting cicadas at Big Foot Beach State Park in Walworth County, the Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (DNR) reminds the public that state law prohibits the capture and removal of animals, including insects, from state park properties.

There are exceptions for hunting and fishing activities that are otherwise authorized by law, but these exceptions do not provide for the collection and removal of cicadas.

DNR park staff and wardens have been instructed to make efforts to first educate the public on cicadas in state parks, and wardens may take enforcement action in response to violations.

If you are aware of cicada harvesting happening at any other state park locations in Wisconsin, please report it to the DNR’s Violation Hotline online or by calling or texting 1-800-847-9367.

Please note that no further information is available and we are not accepting interview requests on this topic at this time.

Honest to goodness, anyone so implicated is ignorantly destructive.

Bear snacks inside concession stand and scares worker:

Daily Bread, Insects, Nature

Daily Bread for 5.26.24: Winged Tiger

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Good morning.

Sunday in Whitewater will be rainy with a high of 68. Sunrise is 5:21 and sunset 8:22 for 15h 01m 06s of daytime. The moon is a waning gibbous with 90.4 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

On this day in 1998,  the Supreme Court rules in New Jersey v. New York that Ellis Island, the historic gateway for millions of immigrants, is mainly in the state of New Jersey, not New York.

Winged Tiger:

Winged Tiger from Tim Kellner on Vimeo.

Learning how to ‘cat’:

Post by @psycohousecat
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City, Daily Bread, Insects, Nature, Science/Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 5.23.24: Cicadas Begin to Emerge Nearby

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Good morning.

Thursday in Whitewater will be mostly sunny with a high of 76. Sunrise is 5:23 and sunset 8:19 for 14h 56m 20s of daytime. The moon is full with 100 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Board of Zoning Appeals meets at 6 PM.

On this day in 1854, the Milwaukee and Mississippi railroad reached Madison, connecting the city with Milwaukee. When the cars pulled into the depot, thousands of people gathered to witness the ceremonial arrival of the first train, and an enormous picnic was held on the Capitol grounds for all the passengers who’d made the seven-hour trip from Milwaukee to inaugurate the line.

On this day in 1949,  after approval from the Western occupying powers, the Basic Law for the Federal Republic of Germany takes effect.

This long weekend may give Wisconsinites their first cicada-viewing opportunities. Claire Reid reports 17-year cicadas are emerging now in Wisconsin. Here’s where you can find them:

“With the temperatures this week and rain showers today and tomorrow, that’s really going to help things,” [Director of the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Insect Diagnostics Lab PJ] Liesch said. “Once the emergence gets going in full swing, we’re probably going to be seeing tens of thousands, hundreds of thousands or even millions of these emerging in relatively small areas in Lake Geneva and other spots in the state.”

Here’s where else the cicadas are expected to emerge in the coming weeks.

This map, created by director of UW-Madison's Insect Diagnostics Lab PJ Liesch, shows where 17-year Brood XIII cicadas have emerged in Wisconsin in the past.
Where will 17-year cicadas emerge in Wisconsin?

The Lake Geneva area will be the best place in Wisconsin to see the 17-year cicadas due to their well-established record there, especially along the northern side of the lake, Liesch wrote in his blog.

Other cicada hotspots include areas of Green County and Rock County, including Janesville and Beloit. Additionally, the insects are expected to be prevalent in southwestern Wisconsin’s Driftless Area counties: Iowa, Sauk, Richland, Crawford and Grant.

See also Return of the Cicadas.

I hope we’ll see cicadas in Whitewater; if not, we’ve other viewing spots nearby.

How the cicada phenomenon is capturing our collective attention:

Daily Bread, Insects, Nature, Science/Nature, Wisconsin

Daily Bread for 4.18.24: Return of the Cicadas

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Good morning.

Thursday in Whitewater will see scattered showers with a high of 53. Sunrise is 6:05 and sunset 7:41 for 13h 35m 58s of daytime. The moon is a waxing gibbous with 75.4 percent of its visible disk illuminated.

Whitewater’s Community Development Authority meets at 5:30 PM.

On this day in 1775, the British advancement by sea begins; Paul Revere and other riders warn the countryside of the troop movements.

Chicagoland in May, parts of Wisconsin in June.

See also UW Insect Diagnostic Lab, Learn more about cicadas, and Help map periodical cicadas in Wisconsin.

Cicadas explained: Three facts about the buzzing insects: