Neotibicen cicadas come in a variety of pastel colors when they are in their teneral (soft) phase, when they inflate their wings and harden their bodies after molting their nymphal skins. Teneral Neotibicen can feature the colors pink, yellow and blue, in addition to pastel versions of the oranges, browns and greens we commonly see on their fully-hardened adult bodies.
Here’s an example of a male Neotibicen lyricen that was pink when it was teneral:
Neotibicen lyricen engelhardti aka Dark Lyric Cicada is a cicada that is distinguisable from the “Lighter” Lyric Cicada (Neotibicen lyricen lyricen) by what I call the “alien head” on its pronotum.
The dark form, engelhardti, has a more eastern, northern and upland distribution (very common in and along the eastern mountains & associated plateaus/fall-line hills). Perhaps the increased pigment seen in this color form serves a thermoregulatory function associated with cooler temps and greater day-night temp differentials seen in higher altitudes and latitudes.
Here’s a video of a Neotibicen lyricen nymph crawling up the trunk of a fir tree, looking for a place to molt. Note the dark eyes and green wing buds. This particular pine tree is my go-to for Lyric cicadas. Here’s another: Neotibicen lyricen molting.
A Neotibicen lyricen engelhardti found in central New Jersey on July 23, 2022, and released on the morning of July 24th.
This cicada is a male. It was less than 12 hours after molting and its colors were not fully resolved (it will get darker). Note the green wings, black collar, and brown “lightbulb-shaped” marking on its head (pronotum).
Where it is found: AL, AR, CT, DE, DC, FL, GA, IL, IN, IA, KS, KY, LA, MD, MA, MI, MS, MO, NE, NH, NJ, NY, NC, OH, OK, ON, PA, RI, SC, TN, TX, VA, WV, WI
Description: The Lyric cicada, like most small Neotibicen, has a green, black & brown camouflage look, but the key is Lyric cicadas typically have black collars. Its sound is like an angle grinder tool steadily grinding a slightly uneven surface.
These are photographs of the same cicada. On the left, it had recently molted (found on the ground like this). The pastel pink, blue, yellow, and orange colors are striking. An hour and a half later most colors have resolved to browns, except for the wings.
A Neotibicen lyricen lyricen description by Wm T. Davis from 1918 1
Tibicen lyricen (De Geer). PI. VIII, fig. i.
Red Bank, August, 1917, male (J. G. Kizer) ; Logtown, summer.
1917, female (A. Lutken) ; Rienzi, August 23, 1915, male (H. Y. Jumper).
This is a widely distributed insect in the eastern half of the United States, being found from Texas to Florida, and Kansas to Massachusetts. In the higher parts of Virginia, North Carolina, Tennessee and Georgia, the variety engcUiardti (Davis) is the pre- vailing form of the species. This is characterized by having the pro- notum and mesonotum nearly all black, except for the somewhat anchor-shaped, tawny spot on the former. It will perhaps be found in the uplands of Mississippi.
The song of lyricen is a rather monotonous zing.
Wm T. Davis’ Identification Key 1
A. Large, heavy bodied species ; head broad, uncus simple, and first cross vein in the fore wings starting from radius 3 far back, or about one third distant from base of first marginal cell.
B. Uncus longer than broad. Black species with green or greenish markings and black area on the central part of the abdomen beneath, except in sayi [Neotibicen tibicen tibicen], and new variety of davisi [Neotibicen davisi].
CC. Hind margin of pronotum or collar black or nearly so (except in sayi var. australis [Neotibicen tibicen australis]).
D. Central area of the abdomen beneath black.
Opercula much shorter, more rounded, and the black area on the under side of the abdomen in the nature
of an even stripe. Uncus not forked. lyricen (De Geer).
Davis, W.T. 1918. Mississippi Cicadas, with a Key to the Species of the Southeastern United States. Journal of The New York Entomological Society. Vol. XXVI. Read on archive.org.
Full Binomial Names: ITIS.gov
Common names: BugGuide.net; The Songs of Insects by Lang Elliott and Wil Herschberger; personal memory.
Locations: Biogeography of the Cicadas (Hemiptera: Cicadidae) of North America, North of Mexico by Allen F. Sanborn and Polly K. Phillips.
Descriptions, Colors: personal observations from specimens or photos from many sources. Descriptions are not perfect, but may be helpful.
Notes:
Some descriptions are based on aged specimens which have lost some or a lot of their color.
Description: The Dark Lyric Cicadas have the darkest coloration of all the Lyric cicadas. Their mesonotum is almost entirely dark brown/black. They have a “soda-pop pull-tab” or keyhole shape on their pronotum.
Wm T Davis’ 1910 description of Neotibicen lyricen engelhardti1
Cicada engelhardti n. sp.
Length: [male] 32 mm., to tip of wings, 50 mm.; [female] 30 mm., to tip of wings 50 mm.
Head black, sometimes with narrow, tawny stripe on front. Pro-thorax black, with small, greenish fulvous central arrow-shaped spot, broadest behind. In lyricen this spot is broadest in front. Posterior and lateral borders of the pronotum black. Mesothorax nearly all black, with two faint parenthesis-like lines of fulvous partly enclos- ing the central portion. Sometimes these lines are heavier and there is a shade of fulvous on the posterior portion of the mesothorax. The inner surface of the front marginal vein is usually back and darker than the same parts in lyricen. Abdomen black above, with two nar- row pruinose lines or spots at base. Beneath, with broad central black stripe and at each side is a broad lateral pruinose border.
This insect is blacker than Cicada lyricen, lacking the considerable amount of fulvous markings of that species, particularly on the pro- thorax.
Identification Key by Wm. T. Davis from 19182
A. Large, heavy bodied species ; head broad, uncus simple, and first cross vein in the fore wings starting from radius 3 far back, or about one third distant from base of first marginal cell.
B. Uncus longer than broad. Black species with green or greenish markings and black area on the central part of the abdomen beneath, except in sayi [Neotibicen tibicen tibicen], and new variety of davisi [Neotibicen davisi].
CC. Hind margin of pronotum or collar black or nearly so (except in sayi var. australis [Neotibicen tibicen australis]).
D. Central area of the abdomen beneath black.
Blacker than typical lyricen, lacking the considerable amount of fulvous markings on the pronotum and mesonotum. A fulvous somewhat anchor-shaped mark centrally on the pronotum.
Davis, W.T. 1910. Observations on Cicada pruinosa and a description of a new species. Entomological News Philadelphia. Vol 21. Pages 457-458. Read on archive.org.
Davis, W.T. 1918. Mississippi Cicadas, with a Key to the Species of the Southeastern United States. Journal of The New York Entomological Society. Vol. XXVI. Read on archive.org.
Full Binomial Names: ITIS.gov
Common names: BugGuide.net; The Songs of Insects by Lang Elliott and Wil Herschberger; personal memory.
Locations: Biogeography of the Cicadas (Hemiptera: Cicadidae) of North America, North of Mexico by Allen F. Sanborn and Polly K. Phillips.
Descriptions, Colors: personal observations from specimens or photos from many sources. Descriptions are not perfect, but may be helpful.
Notes:
Some descriptions are based on aged specimens which have lost some or a lot of their color.
