Cicada Mania

It’s 2011 in Australia now, so I’m wishing everyone a Happy New Year, particularly for those folks in Australia effected by flooding.

There should be a lot of interesting cicada news in 2011, particularly the emergence of Brood XIX 13-year Magicicadas in Arkansas, Georgia, Illinois, Kentucky, Missouri, Mississippi, North Carolina, Oklahoma, South Carolina, Tennessee, and Virginia.

New gallery: Australian cicadas found by Lisa Morgan’s kids in the Wet Tropics rainforest located in Far North Queensland, Australia. Features a Brown Bunyip and a Psaltoda.

New gallery: False cicada chimneys. Bangkok, Thailand.

And new audio/video from Joe Green:

Joe Green’s D. olympusa videos.

Joe Green’s N. hieroglyphica videos.

Joe Green’s M. septendecula calls.

Joe Green’s M. cassini calls.

Joe Green’s M. septendecim calls.

Cicada Mania is 13 years old.

In 1996, I started the site to document some Brood II Magicicada photos I took in my back yard and at a friend’s wedding, and the site took off from there.

The site has had 7 different URLs over the years.

In 2004, during the Brood X emergence, the site received 50,000 visitors in a single day and I was interviewed on CNN (Ted Nugent haircut in a ponytail):

2007 and 2008 were great as well. In 2007 I got to meet fellow cicada enthusiasts Roy Troutman, Gene Kritsky, Gerry Bunker and Joe Green, and I was interviewed for a Japanese TV show:

And in 2008 I drove out to Ohio and stayed with Roy Troutman, met Gene Kritsky again, and met John Cooley for the first time.

Here’s the original logo:

It’s been a fun 13 years.

Ray Edel interviewed me about New Jersey summer cicadas for the Record newspaper (North Jersey). Read the interview.

And here’s a new cicada illustration I’m working on:

Eventually I’ll put in on a mug. :)

Cicada Mania was featured on WTAP’s Surfin’ with Kirk! Watch the video news report. Very Cool!!!