Chicago outdoors: Here come the cicadas

Notes come from around Chicago and beyond.

WILD OF THE WEEK

On Tuesday Barbara Van Diggelen emailed, “They’re emerging! From my backyard garden in Park Ridge, I’m spotting the red-eyed smaller cicadas.” According to The Morton Arboretum, “The northern third of Illinois is in the range of Brood XIII, which last appeared in 2007. Its next appearance is due in 2024.” Some arrive sooner than 2024, as Diggelen saw.

WOTW, the celebration of wild stories and photos around Chicago outdoors, runs most weeks in the special two-page outdoors section in the Sun-Times Sports Saturday. To make submissions, email BowmanOutside@gmail.com or contact me on Facebook (Dale Bowman), Twitter (@BowmanOutside) or Instagram (@BowmanOutside).

DALE’S MAILBAG

“Wanted to let you know we saw our first hummingbird today (5-11). Also, we have seen three Baltimore orioles this week.” Tweet, Frank Kruse, Will County section of Park Forest.

A: Three weeks later and I’m still waiting on an oriole, beginning to lose hope. I did hear one last week.

BIG NUMBER

21-8: Pounds-ounces (9.75 kg) of the all-tackle world-record bowfin, caught by Robert Harmon on Jan. 29, 1980, from Forest Lake, Florence, S.C., according to the International Game Fish Association.

LAST WORD

“The noise produced by cicadas can be very loud and annoying.”

Final sentence, a classic understatement, of The Morton Arboretum’s cicadas page

WILD TIMES

FISH GATHERING

Thursday, June 8: Jim O’Neil, Riverside Fishing Club, Berwyn Moose Lodge 424, 6:30 p.m.

U.S. COAST GUARD AUXILIARY

Next Saturday, June 10: Weekend Navigator, Waukegan, David Colen, dave.colen@gmail.com

ILLINOIS PERMITS

Through June 30: Applications for free dove hunting permits

Through June 30: Second lottery, firearm or muzzleloader deer permits

HALL OF FAME

July 14: Deadline to make nominations for the 2023 Illinois Outdoor Hall of Fame. Click here for the nomination form. For info, info@ilconservation.org or (217) 785-2003.