Author: Dan

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FAQs Life Cycle

Is it possible to raise cicadas?

Is it possible to raise cicadas? It is, but it requires patience and commitment.

Potted Plants

The master of raising cicadas is a Japanese amateur cicada biologist named Shougo Murayama. Shougo has raised more than 1,000 cicadas of six or more species from eggs to adults in his backyard by growing them in see-through pots in clay soil with Aloe or Yucca plants. You can visit his website for more information (tip: use Firefox for better display of the text & then cut and paste it into Google translate). According to Shougo Murayama’s website, the cicadas he raised had 2 to 5-year life cycles.

David Logan of New Zealand successfully raised Kikihia ocharina cicadas from egg to adult. The details of this study can be found in the article Nymphal development and lifecycle length of Kikihia ocharina from 2006. It is important to note that K. ocharina have a short 3-year lifespan, and Logan raised the nymphs in pots with live plants. Logan’s study includes a section about the care of the cicada’s egg before they hatch; hatching can take months, so this part is important. Logan placed the twig with eggs in a vial which he blocked with a moist material.

Logan conducted another study in 2014, this time with Amphipsalta zelandica (Boisduval), proving his methods work.

Richard Karban raised 15-year-old Magicicada nymphs to adulthood using peach trees as hosts for his study of how periodical cicadas keep track of time. This is not quite the same thing as raising cicadas from eggs, but it shows they can be raised outside of their natural habitat. Karban observed a high rate of mortality from the difficult process of transferring cicadas to new roots.

Most people who visit this website (Cicada Mania) are looking for American periodical cicada (Magicicada) information. Raising Magicicada would be quite a commitment. You’ll need an environment that mimics the Magicicada’s natural habitat, including the right soil & host plans, and you’ll need to maintain for at least 13 years (for the 13 year species, 17 years for the 17).

If you’re serious and live in the United States, a cicada with a short lifecycle like Diceroprocta apache will require less of a commitment.

Should you decide to raise cicadas, be sure to read the resources mentioned in this article, and consider the following tips:

  1. Expect 95% of the cicadas to die
  2. Care of the eggs is critical
  3. Use host plants and soil preferred by the species
  4. Use a species that has a short life cycle
  5. Use see-through pots so you can see the cicadas as they develop

I might consider doing this experiment myself, but I would definitely choose a species with a short life-span. I might place some grasses in the pot, in addition to a larger host plant, to give 1st instar nymphs more tiny roots to choose from. I have a (perhaps irrational) fear of a house guest dumping a cup of coffee into my cicada host plant and killing the entire experiment.

Thanks to Chris Simon of The Simon Lab at UConn for pointing me to many of these references.

References:

Logan, DP. 2006. Nymphal development and lifecycle length of Kikihia ocharina (Walker)(Homopetera:Cicadidae). The Weta, 31:12-22.

Logan, DP, Rowe CA, Maher BJ. 2014. Life history of chorus cicada, an endemic pest of Kiwifruit (Homopetera:Cicadidae). New Zealand Entomologist. 37:2:96-102.

Karban, R, Black CA, Weinbaum SA. 2000. How 17-year cicadas keep track of time. Ecology Letters. 3: 253-256.

Categories
Magicicada Periodical Stragglers

Cicada Straggler Alert 2016

Straggler Alert

The point of this article is that you should be on the alert for Magicicada periodical cicadas, no matter what year it is, and if you see or hear them, report them.

Stragglers, in terms of cicadas, are periodical cicadas that emerge in years prior to (precursors) or after their brood is expected to emerge. Most often, 17 year cicada stragglers emerge four years prior to their expected emergence date — but it is possible for periodical cicadas to emerge between 8 years earlier and 4 years later than expected. Read more about cicada stragglers.

This year (2016) Brood IX stragglers should emerge in southern West Virginia, western Virginia and the north-middle part of North Carolina that connects with western Virginia. See a map here.

Looking at the live map on Cicadas @ UCONN (formerly Magicicada.org), it is obvious that most reports come from Brood V and stragglers appear to be emerging in the Brood IX & VI areas as expected — however, there are a fair number of reports in the Brood II and X areas, which is odd.

Map

  • Red: Brood V
  • Orange: Brood IX, 4 years early (most probable)
  • Yellow: Brood VI, 1 year early (probable)
  • Green: Brood II, 3 years late (rare, but possible)
  • Dark Green: Brood X, 5 years early (rare, but possible)

As stated before, it is common for periodical cicadas to emerge 4 years early, but 5 years early is rare. So why Brood X be stragglers this year? That requires a little more thought.

Now we enter the realm of conjecture…

Rick Karban in the paper How 17-year cicadas keep track of time1 demonstrated how you can get cicadas to emerge earlier than expected if you alter the seasonal cycles of their host trees. Make the tree experience two cycles in one year, the cicadas will read this as “two years have passed” and they’ll emerge a year earlier. So, in the case of Brood X stragglers, it could be that their host trees experienced weather fluctuations that caused them to do something that signaled the cicadas that 2 years had passed. Add the 4 years they would likely straggle + 1 year caused by fluctuations from the host tree, and that makes for a 5 year straggler.

The other day wethertrends360 posted this on their facebook page:

Growing Degree Days tell us why the Northeast had such an early surge in plant growth but then slowed. From late February to early April temperatures were near record warm in the Northeast with the 2nd most Growing Degree Days (GDD) in 25 years (chart/map left). This allowed plants to emerge way too early and then the freezes came!

Perhaps this early surge in plant growth, then a freeze, then growth again seemed like two years had passed to some cicadas. Perhaps.

1 How 17-year cicadas keep track of time, Richard Karban, Carrie A. Black1 and Steven A. Weinbaum, Ecology Letters (2000) 3 : 253-256.

Categories
Chris Simon Magicicada Periodical

Magicicada Media Faux Pas

cicada invasion

The media (news papers, bloggers, etc.) sometimes use terms to describe cicadas, and periodical cicada emergences, that range from simply incorrect to grossly hyperbolic. It is unclear if they do this to match reader expectations, to get more clicks, to write a more entertaining article, or simply because they don’t have all the facts. It bothers me when the media uses a photo or video of the wrong species, which is why I have the use the correct image page.

What media mistakes have you witnessed? Let us know in the comments.

Professor Chris Simon, of the University of Connecticut Simon Lab, is one of the premier cicada experts in the world. She provided us with her list of Magicicada Media Faux Pas (below). How many of these have you seen? Can you think of more?

Incorrect Descriptive Words

  • “swarm” They don’t swarm—i.e. fly around in large groups.
  • “invasion” They don’t invade. They have been there the whole time.
  • “plague”
    They are not a plague like grasshoppers that come in and eat everything–they don’t chew leaves. They suck.
  • “overrun” Implies that they are imposing us when in fact we are much more of an imposition on them–clearing their trees and building Walmarts on top of them.

Here are some more funny ones…

  • “lurking underground” They are not lurking or threatening, they are innocently feeding on tree roots.
  • “hatching out of the ground” They don’t hatch out of the ground, they hatched from eggs in tree branches 17years ago.
Categories
Brood V Matt Berger

Brood V Periodical Cicada Molting

Frequent Cicada Mania contributor Matt Berger sent us these video clips of a periodical cicada molting and expanding its wings. Enjoy:

If you find a nymph, and bring it inside, it will likely molt.

Categories
James Edward Heath Magicicada Periodical

64 Degrees Fahrenheit Eight Inches Deep

hot under the exoskeleton

Soil temperature triggers periodical cicada emergences:

James Edward Heath in his paper Thermal Synchronization of Emergence in Periodical “17-year” Cicadas (Homoptera, Cicadidae, Magicicada)1 discovered that periodical cicadas will emerge, on average, when the soil 8 inches below the ground reaches 64 degrees Fahrenheit:

Soil temperature at 20-cm [7.87 in] depth in seven locations averaged 17.89 C [64.202 F] at the time of emergence, regardless of date. Cicadas emerging from burrows had average body temperatures of 18.04 C [64.472 F]. Synchrony in emergence may be due to animals reaching a critical threshold temperature.

The soil warms their bodies and that triggers the cicadas to emerge.

A warm rain, which will seep into the earth and warm the bodies of cicadas, can trigger a “particularly intensive” emergence.

Alexander and Moore (1962) noted that emergences were particularly intensive following warm rains ( > 2 0 C ? ). I believe this suggests that the soil temperature probably was near emergence temperature and the heat transported by the water percolating into the ground warmed the soil sufficiently to raise soil temperature above the emergence threshold.

Some unanswered questions I have are: 1) how long does the temperature have to be 64°F+ – just a moment, or a certain number of hours, and 2) because we know not all cicadas emerge instantaneously, what is the maximum temperature that for certain will clear them from the soil?

This is an example of a temperature probe use to study the emergence temperature of cicadas. The probe in this picture is held by cicada researcher Gene Kritsky:
Gene Kristsky's Cicada Thermometer

Note that males typically emerge before females and that the larger ‘decim species emerge before the smaller cassini species.

For a more modern, crowd-sourced study of this see the radiolab Cicada Tracker project.

I think I know what you’re thinking: “I don’t own a temperature probe, how can I guess when the temperature is 64°F 8” below the soil? Direct sunlight, air temperature, and rain warms the soil. Southern facing land will warm sooner than northern facing land. Land in direct sunlight will warm faster than land in shade. Rainfall on an 80°+ day will quickly do the trick, but two weeks of temps in the 70°’s should work as well. So keep an eye on the 10-day weather forecast and watch for those days in the 70s, and especially the 80s.

Minimum Flight Temperature:
Their body temperature needs to be a little warmer than that to fly. Their minimum flight temperature (MFT) is 18-21°C / 65-70°F. The temperature varies depending on the Brood and species. They’ll need a few more degrees before they’re fully functional, and start singing and mating.

So, until their bodies are about 72°F (“room temperature”) they won’t be flying, singing and mating.

Maximum voluntary tolerance temperature:
Maximum voluntary tolerance temperature (MVT) for periodical cicadas is 31-34°C / 88-93°F, again depending on Brood and species. Maximum voluntary tolerance is the point at which cicadas seek shade and when thermoregulation takes precedence over other behaviors.

See Thermal responses of periodical cicadas: within and between brood parity (Hemiptera: Cicadidae: Magicicada spp.) and Thermoregulation by Endogenous Heat Production in Two South American Grass Dwelling Cicadas (Homoptera: Cicadidae: Proarna) for more information.

1 Thermal Synchronization of Emergence in Periodical “17-year” Cicadas (Homoptera, Cicadidae, Magicicada) by James Edward Heath, American Midland Naturalist, Vol. 80, No. 2. (Oct., 1968), pp. 440-448.

Categories
Okanagana

Okanagana noveboracensis (Emmons, 1854)

Okanagana noveboracensis (Emmons, 1854)

Categories
Cicadettana William T. Davis

Cicadettana calliope floridensis (Davis, 1920)

Cicadettana calliope floridensis (Davis, 1920)

Categories
Clidophleps Philip Reese Uhler

Clidophleps blaisdellii (Uhler, 1892)

Clidophleps blaisdellii (Uhler, 1892)

Categories
Allen F. Sanborn Beameria Maxine E. Heath

Beameria ansercollis Sanborn and M. Heath in Sanborn, M. Heath, Phillips and J. Heath, 2011

Beameria ansercollis Sanborn and M. Heath in Sanborn, M. Heath, Phillips and J. Heath, 2011.

Name, Location and Description

Categories
Cicada Mania Magicicada Periodical Video

Please use the correct imagery for 17 year cicadas

If you’re writing an article about the coming emergence of the 17-year periodical cicadas, please use the correct genus & species of cicadas.

The genus of all 17-year cicadas is Magicicada, and they are never green. The three species of 17-year cicadas are Magicicada septendecim, Magicicada cassini, and Magicicada septendecula. They’re all black with orange wings and legs and red eyes (some exceptions, but they’re never green). The four species of 13-year cicadas are Magicicada neotredecim, Magicicada tredecim, Magicicada tredecassini and Magicicada tredecula (also never green). More information about these species.

An adult Magicicada septendecim by Dan Mozgai/cicadamania.com:

Magicicada septendecim Brood VII 2018 09

An adult Magicicada septendecim by Dan Mozgai/cicadamania.com:

Face of an adult cicada

A newly emerged, teneral, Magicicada septendecim by Dan Mozgai/cicadamania.com:

Teneral Cicada

17-year cicada video:

A singing Magicicada septendecim:

Singing Magicicada septendecim from Cicada Mania on Vimeo.

A Magicicada septendecim laying eggs:

A Magicicada septendecim up close (deceased):

Magicicada on a tree (mostly Magicicada cassini):

For the sake of cicada correctness, feel free to use them in your article. Just credit cicadamania.com.

If you are looking to license Magicicada images or HD Video, Roy Troutman has plenty of both. Reach out to him if interested. His images and video are tagged throughout the site.

Hundreds of shed cicada skins (exuvia) by Troutman:

Click/tap for a larger version:
2014 Ohio Exuvia Pile by Roy Troutman

Wrong Cicadas:

If the cicada you use in your article is green, it isn’t a 17-year cicada. I repeat: if the cicada is green it is not a 17-year cicada.

The cicada at the top of the Wikipedia page for cicadas is not a 17-year cicada, it’s an annual cicada called Neotibicen linnei:

Tibicen linnei
(photo credit for this Neotibicen linnei).

Looking for people to speak at a conference or “cicadacon”?

Need a speaker for a Cicada Convention or a Periodical Cicada Event? Try these folks: