Image Credit: Terry W. and She-Kong C. from Carbondale, IL
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Image Credit: Terry W. and She-Kong C. from Carbondale, IL
The Dog-Day Cicada cover neighborhoods in massive numbers desperate to reproduce before its short adult life ends.
Seen frequently on the hottest days of the summer, the Dog-Day Cicada is a harmless insect that happens to be a delightful food item for many other animals. Raccoons, wasps and other insects feast on the cicada all season long. Adult cicadas have a call that sounds like a circular saw tearing through wood, and in large numbers, that noise can be almost deafening during the day and at night. This particular species seems to prefer pines and its presence will disappear from an area once all pine trees are harvested or dead.
The adult Dog Day Cicada is dark brown or black. A gold mark on the thorax is shaped like two 'V's. A green band at the back of the head stretches into its large wings. The eyes stick out of the sides of the head. Adults are not known to eat. Instead, they focus their energy on reproducing during their short lifespans. It breeds, lays eggs on branches in trees, and then it dies. Larvae hatch from the eggs and fall to the ground, burrowing down into the earth to mature. They may drink fluids from tree roots.
After growing underground for a time, they resurface and the young nymphs will molt (shed) their exoskeleton in order to become longer and thicker. The cicada bursts out the back of its old exoskeleton, leaving it to dry out in place. These dried-out, crunchy brown 'shells' of the younger nymph look just like a living cicada, and it's not uncommon to see them clutching onto tree trunks, on plant stems, soffits, gutters, window screens, and even blades of tall grass. It takes 3 years for nymphs to become an adult.
Taxonomic Hierarchy
Kingdom:Animalia
Phylum:Arthropoda
Class:Insecta
Order:Hemiptera
Family:Cicadidae
Genus:Tibicen
Species:canicularis
Identifying Information
Scientific Name: Tibicen canicularis
Category:
Cicada and Planthopper
Size (Adult; Length): 27mm to 33mm (1.05in to 1.29in)
Note: An insect's reach is not limited by lines drawn on a map and therefore species may appear in areas, regions and/or states beyond those listed above as they are driven by environmental factors (such as climate change), available food supplies and mating patterns. Grayed-out selections indicate that the subject in question has not been reported in that particular territory. U.S. states and Canadian provinces / territories are clickable to their respective bug listings.
Colors: green; black; yellow; gold; brown
