Adult female cicada, Genus Dundubia, showing Tympanal cover. Photo and text by Santisuk Vibul.
Adult female cicadas have perceptive organ ie. Tympana or Ear drums which are mirror-like membranes. The tympana of adult female cicadas are much more smaller than that of the males because they are less developed. The tympana of the female cicadas (shown on the above photo) function as a perceptive organ to percept the calls of the male cicadas from the distance and also function as a shield to protect their tympana like the opercula of the male cicadas.
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