Cicada: Is this the year of the cicada?

They have been singing eerily for 10 days. Their song is piercing, unmistakable.

A friend saw one on a gate post in my backyard three days ago. My approach scared it off. It began to sing 10 minutes later from a hidden perch.

I spotted one on my neighbour’s porch this morning, suppressed my strong need for coffee, told my wife to wait a minute, retrieved my camera and tried hard not to scare off this particular, peculiar, photo subject.

A cicada. You may know this insect. You may have seen its exo-skeletal remains clutching the bark of a spruce or pine tree. You may have heard its high-pitched song used to attract a mate for one brief fling.

National Geographic online says the following:

"Cicadas are probably best known for their buzzing and clicking noises, which can be amplified by multitudes of insects into an overpowering hum. Males produce this species-specific noise with vibrating membranes on their abdomens...

Cicadas are also famous for their penchant for disappearing entirely for many years, only to reappear in force at a regular interval. There are some 3,000 cicada species, but only some share this behavior (the 17-year cicada is an example)." [Link to National Geographic]


"There are more than 1,500 species of cicada, but one of the best known is the periodical cicada that emerges from the ground every seventeen years." Nat Geo Wild

Perhaps I saw a 17-year cicada this morning and three days ago. Perhaps the 17-year wait for a mate may be the reason the male sings so loudly and piercingly!

Without going into particulars, I’m pretty sure I’d talk - maybe even sing - in an excited tone if I was ever in this insect’s shoes... or exo-skeleton.




[Photos by G.Harrison]

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