Soon, it could be raining cicada pee in Florida and several other U.S. states

Cicada season is just around the corner in a number of U.S. states, meaning millions of people will soon be hearing the deafening buzz of the insect’s mating call. But scientists say the cicadas may also soon be peeing on people.

Scientists say the bugs drink 300 times their weight in plant sap every day, so when it’s time for them to go, they really go – at a speed of 10 feet per second. In fact, experts say cicadas have the “strongest urine jet stream” of any animal relative to its size.

According to an article published last week in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, cicadas do eliminate waste in the form of urine, and reportedly in a powerful stream that belies their size.

The good news is cicadas don’t carry diseases and their urine is “generally harmless,” according to the Environmental Protection Agency.

Florida has 19 species of cicadas that are categorized by size, with small cicadas having forewings less than 7 mm, medium cicadas having forewings 23-32 mm, and large cicadas having forewings 31-57 mm.

• The small cicadas include the little brown cicada (Cicadetta calliope) and the little green cicada (Cicadetta floridensis).
• The medium cicadas include the Olympic cicada (Diceroprocta olympusa) and the seaside cicada (Diceroprocta viridifascia).
• The large cicadas include the Keys cicada (Diceroprocta biconica).

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