Cicadas are insects in the order Homoptera, family Cicadidae. Male cicadas make a well-known, loud, strident, buzzing sound during the summer, so these unusual insects are often heard, but not necessarily seen. Species of cicadas are most diverse in closed and open forests of the temperate and tropical zones.
Cicadas are large dark-bodied insects, with a body length of 2 in (5 cm), membranous wings folded tent-like over the back, and large eyes. Male cicadas have a pair of small drum-like organs (tymbals), located at the base of their abdomen. These structures have an elastic, supporting ring, with a membrane extending across it (the tymbal membrane). The familiar very loud, buzzing noises of cicadas a…
Cicadas have prolonged nymphal stages, which are spent within the ground, sucking juices from the roots of plants, especially woody species. Most cicada species have overlapping generations, so that each year some of the population of subterranean nymphs emerges from the ground and transforms into a fairly uniform abundance of adults, as is the case of the dog-day or annual cicada (Tibicen pruinos…
When they are breeding in abundance, some species of cicadas cause economic damage by the injuries that result when the females lay their eggs in the branches and twigs of commercially important species of trees. The periodical cicada is the most important species in this respect in North America. This species can cause a great deal of damage in hardwood-dominated forests in parts of eastern North…
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