Sunday, July 20, 2008

Cicadas




Twelve days ago, I wasn't ready to see the creature that had landed on our wet carpet that we had pulled out of our basement and laid outside next to our house. I looked down, and sure enough, clinging the fuchsia colored carpeting, laid a dripping wet cicada. Not the periodical kind, like I had photographed earlier this year in southern Ohio, but the honest to goodness summer is progressing and is almost over type of cicada. Had we really advanced this far? I can remember how we were all just complaining that spring would never come, and now, here, on our crappy wet carpeting, was a sign that we're on the back end of summer.

I'm speculating that this individual was a recent hatch, since I had not heard a single characteristic buzzing sound that usually alerts me that the height of summer has arrived. It clung to the carpet, it could not fly because it was so wet, and possibly it had not fully hardened after its hatch. What a great photo opportunity, I thought. I grabbed the camera and flash, and went to town, snapping away at various angles. Notice the water droplet still clinging to its left eye.



Satisfied that I had successfully photographed it on the carpeting, I wanted to get this creature in a more natural surrounding, so I gently picked it up and placed it on some box-elder leaves, and continued to fire away. The insect has several parts that really fascinated me- the orange spheres grouped in triangle on the top of its head, the tiny antennae, and its horizontally striped face.







After a little research on bugguide, I think my photos match up fairly well to images of the dog day cicada, Tibicen canicularis. Megan and I have now started to hear male cicadas (the females don't sing) at our new place. Perhaps the nymphs live under our yard and suck the juices from our bur oak tree. I think we're happy to provide them with a little food, as long as they let me photograph them every once in a while.

Happy cicada watching-

Tom

12 comments:

  1. Tom: What a super photo opportunity, I'm glad you got so many good shots of this one.

    I will try to take your advise on spots soon.

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  2. Great macros, Tom. The three ocelli really stand out. I can remember hours spent catching these insects or collecting their shed skins as a kid. We always called the locust for some reason.

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  3. Nice photo op he provided you! Great close-up shots.

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  4. What a wonderful opportunity for some great photos! We used to have dozens of cicadas back in Long Island. One day my bro & I would wake up & find buckets-full of exoskeletons on the trees. They're such alien-looking critters, but then again, most bugs are!

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  5. That is scary, I was just thinking that same thing about summer almost being over especially as I looked at the back to school ads in today's paper. I was sad when I realized that I had that thought summer just got here.

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  6. Wow...wonderful photos! The details are amazing. I had no idea it had all the color and markings. What are those little orange dots? Do you know? Please don't say summer is ending! Even though I hate the heat, I'm not ready to head back to winter....of course fall is nice.

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  7. Great cicada report. Beautiful shots. Good macros.

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  8. What impressive photos. You had so many great shots. Great information too. Thanks for sharing.

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  9. These are just gorgeous photos! Like commenter Marvin, I always called them locusts, too, when I was a kid anyway. I still call them that sometimes, incorrectly but fondly. They really are lovely, with their inlaid-gem colors and diamond-cut wings!

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  10. Cool pics Tom. In the south, the vernacular is "Dog Day Cicada." Do they use that as the common name around OH?

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  11. We've been hearing the cicadas for a couple of weeks up here in the northwestern corner of the state. I'm finding all kinds of their molts attached to the trees. I find their holes from where they've emerged, under our Morrow Honeysuckle every year. Lots and lots of molts found there, too.

    I love their sound, but you're right - it means that summer is on the downswing. :-(

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  12. Wow, that is a magnificent insect! We don't get cicadas in the UK - it looks enormous!

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