Cicada ManiaBecquartina electa is a cicada found in China, Thailand, and Vietnam. They are part of a group of cicadas known as “butterfly cicadas” because of their colorful wings.
Photo by Michel Chantraine:
Scientific classification:
Family: Cicadidae
Subfamily: Cicadinae
Tribe: Gaeanini
SubTribe: Becquartinina
Genus: Becquartina
Species: Becquartina electa (Jacobi, 1902)
Ayuthia spectabile is a cicada found in Malaysia, Thailand, and Vietnam.
Female Ayuthia spectabile:
Scientific classification:
Family: Cicadidae
Subfamily: Cicadinae
Tribe: Ayuthiini (formerly Tosenini)*
Subtribe: Ayuthiina
Genus: Ayuthia
Species: Ayuthia spectabile Distant, 1919
* The tribe changed in 2021. See: Hill Kathy B. R., Marshall David C., Marathe Kiran, Moulds Maxwell S., Lee Young June, Pham Thai-Hong, Mohagan Alma B., Sarkar Vivek, Price Benjamin W., Duffels J. P., Schouten Marieke A., de Boer Arnold J., Kunte Krushnamegh, Simon Chris (2021) The molecular systematics and diversification of a taxonomically unstable group of Asian cicada tribes related to Cicadini Latreille, 1802 (Hemiptera:Cicadidae). Invertebrate Systematics 35, 570-601. https://doi.org/10.1071/IS20079
Auritibicen kyushyuensis is found in Japan and is known as Kyushu-ezo-zemi.
Auritibicen kyushyuensis photo by Osamu Hikino:
Scientific classification:
Family: Cicadidae
Subfamily: Cicadinae
Tribe: Cryptotympanini
SubTribe: Cryptotympanina
Genus: Auritibicen (formerly Lyristes and Tibicen)
Species: Auritibicen kyushyuensis (Kato, 1926)
For more information about this cicada, visit Cicadae in Japan.
There are ten sub-species of Auritibicen japonicus. They are found in Japan and known as Ezo-zemi.
Photo of a male Auritibicen japonicus by Osamu Hikino.
Photo of an Auritibicen japonicus by Osamu Hikino:
Scientific classification:
Family: Cicadidae
Subfamily: Cicadinae
Tribe: Cryptotympanini
SubTribe: Cryptotympanina
Genus: Auritibicen (formerly Lyristes and Tibicen)
Subspecies:
For more information about this cicada, visit Cicadae in Japan.
Huechys sanguinea is a cicada found in Burma, China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, Pakistan, Thailand, and likely many other nations in Asia. There are at least 5 subspecies of this cicada. It is also known as the “medicinal cicada” because people use it as a medicine (see my translation below).
Photo by Michel Chantraine:
Description1:
Body and legs black; front and face to head, two large spots to mesonotum — sometimes fused and covering the whole disk — and the abdomen, sanguineous; base of abdomen narrowly black.
Tegmina black, opaque; wings shining fuscous, sometimes almost black, the interior of the anal area always paler.
Rostrum passing the intermediate coxae; face moderately compressed, and very coarsely striate.
Long. excl. tegm. Male and Female 17 to 25 millim. Exp. tegm. 43 to 65 millim.
Here’s my translation, from French, of a note about the medicinal properties of the cicada. The original text comes from A Monograph of Oriental Cicadas:
According to Dr. Fumouze, “Huechys sanguinea, the Cicada sangiunolenta d’OIivier, is a very strong [common] insect in certain provinces of China, where it is harvested for the needs [valuable medicinal properties] of the species. In China, this insect would pass into China to enjoy curative properties, and it would be used chiefly in the treatment of rabies, but its value as much as the medicine against rabies is doubtful, but its action on the genitourinary organs seems to be certain, and this is what is in the fore, if the Huechys sanguinea would not yield a particular or similar active ingredient to the cantharides, what I can say now, it is because, by the procedures used to extract Cantharidin from cantharides, I have obtained no results, perhaps I will be later after that, but my first researches have not been completely unsuccessful, because I arrived to extract from Huechys sanguinea the material which gives to the abdominous teguments of this insect their magnificent yellow-orange color. This matter, which I will call Huechys’ red, is of a color exactly like that of the abdomen of the animal, as you can see by means of a sample which I put before your eyes. Huechys sanguinea also contains, but in smaller quantities, another yellowish, hygrometric dying material. “- Btdl. Soc. Ent. Fr. 1888, pp. xxii., xxiii.
TL;DR = “People use it to treat rabies, but it’s doubtful it actually works as a rabies treatment. It does work for its ‘Viagra-like’ properties. And its red pigment can be extracted.”
Scientific classification:
Family: Cicadidae
Subfamily: Cicadettinae
Tribe: Cicadettini
SubTribe: Huechysina
Genus: Huechys
Species:
For more information about this cicada, visit Cicadas of India.
Tosena depicta Distant, 1888 is a cicada found on Borneo (Brunei, Indonesia, and Malaysia), and possbily other islands of the Malay archipelago.
Scientific classification:
Family: Cicadidae
Subfamily: Cicadinae
Tribe: Tosenini
Genus: Tosena
Species: Tosena depicta Distant, 1888
Species specimen description from A Monograph of Oriental Cicadas by W.L. Distant:
Head and thorax above black; head with a spot at apex of front and a spot at each anterior angle of vertex, two central spots on anterior margin of pronotum, the posterior margin of pronotum, four spots in transverse series on mesonotum, and the posterior margin of mesonotum ochraceous ; the centre of basal cruciform elevation black. Abdomen above reddish ochraceous, with a central, longitudinal, narrow, dorsal, fuscous fascia. Head beneath, sternum, a lateral fascia to opercula, and legs black; a spot at base and one on each side of base of face ; coxas, apices of femora and tibia, tarsi (excluding base) and rostrum (excluding apex) ochraceous. Body beneath ochraceous, the basal segment blackish.
Tegmma dark olivaceous, the costal membrane and the venation reddish ochraceous, and with a transverse and slightly oblique greyish-white fascia near centre, not extending above the base of the second ulnar area; posterior basal margin narrowly reddish ochraceous. Wings black, the basal area reddish ochraceous, with its posterior margin black.
The rostrum reaches the apex of the basal abdominal segment, and the tegmina have their apices considerably attenuated.
Long. excl. tegm. 36 millim. Exp. tegm. 90 millim.
Tibicina casyapae (Distant, 1888) is a cicada found in India and Afganastan.
Tibicina casyapae was formerly known as Tibicen casyapae. It was moved from the Tibicen Latreille, 1825 genus to the Tibicina Kolenati, 1857 genus.
Scientific classification:
Family: Cicadidae
Subfamily: Cicadettinae
Tribe: Tibicinini
SubTribe: Tibicinina
Genus: Tibicina
Species: Tibicina casyapae (Distant, 1888)
[female] Head black; margins of front, ocelli, and a small central basal spot, dull reddish; eyes ochraceous. Pronotum dull reddish, the margins and two central longitudinal lines black. Mesonotum black; two central ” antler “- shaped fasciae, the lateral margins, and the basal cruciform elevation, dull reddish, the anterior angles of the last black. Abdomen above black. Body beneath black, somewhat greyishly pilose; face red, its central longitudinal sulcation black; rostrum black; legs reddish, the femora streaked with black beneath.
Tegmina and wings pale hyaline, their bases dull reddish, the venation blackish; the costal membrane of tegmina ochraceous.
The face is large, but laterally compressed and strongly striated, with a profound central longitudinal sulcation. The rostrum about reaches the intermediate coxae; the legs are robust, and the anterior femora have a strong spine beneath at apex and a similar spine near base.
Long. excl. tegm. [female] , 35 millim. Exp. tegm. 90 millim.
Terpnosia stipata (Walker, 1950) is a cicada found in Sri Lanka.
Scientific classification:
Family: Cicadidae
Subfamily: Cicadinae
Tribe: Psithyristriini
SubTribe: Psithyristriina
Genus: Terpnosia
Species: Terpnosia stipata (Walker, 1950)
Species specimen description from A Monograph of Oriental Cicadas by W.L. Distant:
[Male] Body above greenish-ochraceous; head with the margins of front and apical angles of vertex fuscous; the area of the ocelli, an oblique fascia on each side, and a small spot at inner margins of eyes, black. Pronotum with two central fasciae united posteriorly, the fissures, a spot on lateral margins, extreme edge of posterior margin and a spot on each side of same, black. (The discal coloration of the pronotum in the specimen described is l)ro\vnish-ochraceous.) Mesonotum with a central linear fascia with a shorter one on each side, followed by a small obconical spot and a sinuated sublateral fascia, black; two small spots in front of the cruciform elevation and the angles of same black. Abdomen with the posterior segmental margins, a broad central dorsal fascia, and a macular lateral fascia, very dark fuscous; extreme apex greyish -white. Bodj’ beneath and legs pale greenish; the abdomen beneath talc-like and semi-transparent; a few sternal spots, the anterior femoral spines, and the tarsi, more or less fuscous.
Tegmina and wings pale hyaline, the venation fuscous or ochraceous; tegmina with the costal membrane ochraceous; the transverse veins at the bases of the second, third and fifth apical areas infuscated, and a marginal series of small fuscous spots situate on the longitudinal veins to apical areas.
Face globose, centrally sulcated except at base, where there is a slight callosity; lateral striations profound; rostrum slightly passing the posterior coxae.
Long. excl. tegm. [male], 3:3 millim.; [female], 22 millim. Exp. tegm. [male] , 80 millim.; [female] , 70 millim.
Platypleura coelebs Stål, 1863, is a cicada found in India and China.
Platypleura coelebs was formerly known as Poecilopsaltria coelebs.
Scientific classification:
Family: Cicadidae
Subfamily: Cicadinae
Tribe: Platypleurini
Genus: Platypleura
Species: Platypleura coelebs Stål, 1863
Species specimen description from A Monograph of Oriental Cicadas by W.L. Distant:
Head ochraceous; front, excluding a central spot, margins of vertex between front and eyes, and a transverse fascia between the eyes black; pronotum pale castaneous, the posterior and lateral margins ochraceous; mesonotum castaneous, with four large obconical black spots on anterior margin, the central two smallest, a central discal elongate black spot and a small black spot in front of each anterior angle of the basal cruciform elevation; abdomen black, the tympanal coverings, and the posterior segmental margins ochraceous. Head beneath, sternum, legs, rostrum and opercula ochraceous; a transverse fascia between the eyes — enclosing a pale spot on face — inner margins of eyes, posterior margin of face and apex of rostrum black: abdomen beneath castaneous, with the posterior segmental margins and the apes ochraceous.
Tegmina with about the basal half creamy opaque shaded with pale fuscous, and more or less outwardly defined by an indistinct curved pale fuscous fascia, remaining area hyaline, costal membrane and venation dark ochraceous, the transverse veins at the bases of the second, third, fourth, fifth and seventh apical areas slightly infuscated; wings stramineous for about two-thirds their area from base, this coloration outwardly margined with fuscous, remaining area pale hyaline, the venation dark ochraceous.
The rostrum extends a little beyond the inner angles of the opercula, which are somewhat well separated.
Long. excl. tegm. 22 to 23 millim. Exp. tegm. 64 to 68 millim. Exp. pronot. angl. 11 millim.
Dundubia rufivena rufivena Walker, 1850 is a cicada from the island of Borneo (Indonesia, Malaysia and Brunei).
Dundubia rufivena rufivena was also once known as Dundubia mellea.
Scientific classification:
Family: Cicadidae
Subfamily: Cicadinae
Tribe: Dundubiini
SubTribe: Dundubiina
Genus: Dundubia
Species: Dundubia rufivena rufivena Walker, 1850
Description of “Dundubia mellea, n. sp. ? or D. rufivena, var. ?” specimens from A Monograph of Oriental Cicadas:
[male] Head, pronotum and mesonotum brownish-ochraceous, ocelli pale ochraceous, eyes pale castaneous; front with some obscure black lateral striae; mesonotum with two short faint central obconical spots, and a larger obconical spot on each lateral area; base of cruciform elevation dark castaneous; abdomen above and beneath and the opercula golden-yellow, margins of the opercula more or less shaded with black; head beneath, sternum and legs dull ochraceous, tibiae and tarsi pale castaneous.
Tegmina and wings pale hyaline, the first with the costal membrane and basal portion of the venation bright ochraceous, remaining venation darker; wings with the venation ochraceous, in some portions, infuscated.
The rostrum extends to about the intermediate coxae; the opercula are somewhat short, concave on each side near base and rounded at apices, which about reach the base of the fifth abdominal segment; anterior femora and posterior tibiae spined.