For the identification of insects and other fauna and flora of South Africa.

Tuesday, February 19, 2013

Cicada emerging

Cicada females lay their eggs in the ground and it takes between 8-10 years for it to pupate. When they finally emerge, they crawl up a tree and then the cicada hatches but this is normally done at night and all that is left in the morning is the empty skin. I was lucky enough to catch this one in the process. The males use a membrane in their stomachs to make that constant noise one hears.

1 comment:

Diane said...

Fantastic photo Joan, well done. I am amazed that it takes 8 to 10 years to pupate. Interesting. Take care Diane