Periodical cicada damage to a tulip tree branch. Used under a CC BY-NC 3.0 license.įigure 7. Female periodical cicada laying eggs in a tree branch. Adults periodical cicadas live for three to four weeks above ground and each female can lay 400–600 eggs over a lifetimeįigure 6. The pockets are placed close together in a straight row and sometimes form a continuous slit for two to three inches (Figure 7). She then moves forward, cuts another pocket, and lay more eggs (Figure 6). Using a saw-like ovipositor, a female cicada cuts a small pocket into a twig, in which she deposit 24–28 eggs. About 10 days after emergence, females mate and begin depositing eggs in twigs and branches of various trees and woody shrubs. Soon after emerging, males begin to sing while females remain silent. Photograph by Matt Bertone, used with permission. Cicada molting (annual cicada shown but the process is the same for periodical cicadas). Photograph by John Pearson via Bugguide, used under a CC BY-ND-NC 1.0 license.įigure 5. While stragglers may emerge a few days earlier or later, the main emergence of a periodical cicada brood often occurs over one or just a few nights.įigure 4. This makes them easy prey for various birds, which gorge themselves on the cicadas. Once the exoskeleton is hardened the adults are capable of flying but are rather clumsy fliers and often collide into objects. At this point, the cicadas are soft, white, and unable to fly as the exoskeleton takes a few hours to harden (Figure 5). The adult cicadas then shed the nymphal exoskeleton, which is left behind, in an hour or less. In Pennsylvania, this usually occurs in late May or early June, depending on how warm or cold spring temperatures were. When the soil temperature reaches 64☏, the nymphs exit the ground and crawl a foot or more up tree trunks, weeds, or other upright objects. If the ground is too damp, the mature nymphs build a protective earthen turret, which can help identify where cicadas will emerge (Figure 4). When nymphs determine it is the year to emerge, they burrow to about an inch beneath the soil surface in April. Periodical cicada nymphs live in the soil at depths of two to twenty-four inches, where they feed on sap from tree roots. Image produced by Chao Wu, used with permission. How to distinguish the three 17-year cicada species. To hear the differences in the songs of the males, listen to the examples of cicada calls on Cicada Mania.įigure 3. septendecula, they also lack an orange spot on the side of the pronotum. septendecim and usually have entirely black abdomens that lack orange bands (thing yellow bands may occasionally be present) and like M. Magicicada cassinii are also smaller than either M. septendecim, have narrow orange bands on the abdomen, and lack an orange spot on the side of the pronotum. Magicicada septendecula are smaller than M. They have wide orange bands on the abdomen that are equal to or wider than the black bands and typically have an orange spot on the side of the pronotum. Magicicada septendecim are the largest species. Three species of periodical cicada occur in Pennsylvania and can be distinguished based on differences in color and the songs of the males (Figure 3). Photograph by Matt Bertone, used with permission.įigure 2. Periodical cicada ( Magicicada septendecim). However, they can be distinguished based on size, color, and emergence time: annual cicadas are larger with greenish wing veins (Figure 2) and emerge from July through September instead of late May through early June.įigure 1. Periodical cicadas may be confused with various species of annual cicadas, which emerge every year. IdentificationĪdult periodical cicadas are about one and one-half inches long, mostly black in color with reddish-orange eyes and wing veins (Figure 1). Three species of 17-year cicadas occur in Pennsylvania and may emerge at the same time. 17-year cicadas generally have a northern distribution while 13-year cicadas are more southern, although they exhibit considerable overlap in the middle of the United States from North Carolina and Georgia west to Missouri and both types may be found in the same forest. There are seven species, three of which have 17-year lifecycles and four of which have 13-year lifecycles. Periodical cicadas are native to eastern North America and are found nowhere else. Young trees can sometimes be damaged or killed, but this can usually be avoided by delaying transplant or covering at-risk trees with netting. Cicadas do not bite people and are usually at most a mild nuisance because of the noise they produce. Periodical cicadas are native to eastern North America and mass emerge in in huge broods.
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