Categories
Brood I Magicicada Periodical

Is it hot enough for cicadas yet?

Update (4/23): The first Brood I emergence (that we heard of) occurred in Roanoke, Virginia. Unfortunately, the sudden cold, wet weather seems to have hurt the early emerging cicadas.

The rest of this post was originally from March 11th, 2012:

Next week temperatures are forecasted to reach 79°F in the parts of Virginia, where Brood I Magicicadas are expected to emerge this year. That’s hot for March, but is it hot enough for the cicadas? Periodical cicadas typically emerge when the soil 8″ below the surface reaches 64°F. Although temperatures will be in the 70’s all week, that might not be enough to heat the soil to the necessary temperature, but stranger things have happened.

Last year Brood XIX Magicicada started emerging in Abbeville County, South Carolina after only 3 days of temperatures in the 70s.

My guess is temperatures won’t heat the soil enough to launch a full-blown emergence, but a few cicadas will emerge in the warmest and sunniest areas. Keep on the look out. Take photos and video. Report sightings to magicicada.org. locations; places like Rockbridge, Page, Botetourt, and Bath counties…

hot under the exoskeleton

Categories
Pop Culture

New Cicada Stuff

Thanks to Roy Troutman for these cicada-themed items: clothespins, a ring and a tin clicker toy.

cicada stuff

Categories
Old Message Board

2011 General Cicada Questions

I am interested in building a large cage, do you have any tips?

I am interested in building a large cage, do you have any tips?

Comment by Rw — February 17, 2011 [AT] 3:49 pm

I know its early but I have a theory on this years emergence of Brood XIX in Missouri

I know its early but I have a theory on this years emergence of Brood XIX in Missouri. After hearing about some 2010 stragglers from brood IV in eastern Kansas and witnessing a handful of stragglers in the Kansas City area myself, I am starting to wonder if we will see some of brood IV emerging 4 years early along with brood XIX. I’m curious to see if the Magicicadas in the areas of eastern kansas/western Missouri have changed their life cycle from 17 years to 13. It would be very interesting.

Comment by Steve — January 27, 2011 [AT] 1:14 pm

Categories
Brood I Magicicada Periodical

Brood I cicadas will emerge in Virginia and West Virginia in 2012

The Magicicada periodical cicadas belonging to Brood I (one) will emerge in western Virginia and eastern West Virginia in the spring of 2012. Brood I cicadas have a 17-year life cycle. Three species of periodical cicada will emerge: Magicicada cassini, Magicicada septendecim, and Magicicada septendecula.

Brood I is also called the Blue Ridge brood because the emergence occurs in the Blue Ridge Highlands area. Brood I has historically emerged along RT 81 in Virginia, parts of George Washington National Forest, Jefferson National Forest, and around the Spruce Knob-Seneca Rocks National Recreation Area in West Virginia. Visit the Brood I page on Magiciada.org for more information and maps.

Get ready…

Magicicada septendecim

Categories
FAQs Genera

How to say cicada around the world

Ever wonder how people say “cicada” around the world. According to Google Translate, here’s how to say “cicada” in 44 different languages.

This page is a little messed up at the moment. Check back later.

Afrikaans: sonbesie
Armenian: ts’ikada
Belarusian: cykady
Bulgarian: tsikada
Catalan: cigala
Chinese: Chán
Czech: cikáda
Dutch: cicade
Estonian: tsikaad
Filipino: kuliglig
Finnish: laulukaskas
French: cigale
Galician: cigarra
German: Zikade
Greek: tzitzíki
Haitian Creole: sigal
Hindi: Sikada
Hungarian: kabóca
Indonesian: tonggeret
Italian: cicala
Japanese: Semi
Kannada: Rekkeya
Korean: maemi
Latvian: cikade
Macedonian: cikada
Malay: Cengkerik
Maori: Tatarakihi
Polish: cykada
Portuguese: cigarra
Romanian: greier
Russian: tsikada
Serbian: cikada
Slovak: Cikada
Spanish: cigarra, chicharra
Swedish: cikada
Ukrainian: tsykada
Vietnamese: con ve

Last edited 3/29/2021.

Categories
Brazil

Another Brazilian Cicada ID challenge

Jairo from Cigarras do Brasil — Brazilian Cicadas website returns with more cicadas from Brazil for you to identify.

Cicada One

Brazil Brasil

Cicada Two

Brazil Brasil

Cicada Three

Brazil Brasil

Brazil Brasil

Categories
Toys and Amusements Video

A new cicada video: Cicada Toys, Art, Action Figures, Lures, Keyrings, Soda and other Objects

I had some free time today so a made a video of the cicada-related objects I’ve collected over the past 15 or so years. The video includes cicada noise makers, whistles, action figures, a music comp, a kite, cicada soda, rubber toys, fishing lures and other fun stuff.

Cicada Toys, Art, Action Figures, Lures, Keyrings, Soda and other Objects from Cicada Mania on Vimeo.

Categories
Gene Kritsky Nymphs

Cicadas serenaded the dinosaurs

Apparently cicadas serenaded the dinosaurs! Entomologist and Mount St. Joseph professor Gene Kritsky shared the news today that cicadas lived as long as 110 million years ago during the Cretaceous period.

A quote from a press release:

New research has documented that cicadas, those noisy insects that sing during the dog days of summer, have been screaming since the time of the dinosaurs.

A fossil of the oldest definitive cicada to be discovered was described by George Poinar, Jr., Ph.D., professor of zoology at Oregon State University and Gene Kritsky, Ph.D., professor of biology, at the College of Mount St. Joseph in Cincinnati. The cicada, measuring 1.26 mm in length, was named Burmacicada protera.

Read the full Press Release on the MSJ website.

Here is a photo of the ancient Burmacicada protera cicada nymph trapped in amber. Photo credit: George Poinar, Jr., Ph.D.

Burmacicada protera. Copyright of George Poinar, Jr.

It looks a lot like a modern-day first-instar cicada nymph:
First instar cicada nymphs
Photo by Roy Troutman.

Update: Here’s a video news story about Gene’s fossil find.

I need a step-up my fossil collecting hobby. It looks like there’s some places in New Jersey to find fossils. Maybe I’ll find a cicada.

Categories
Cicada Mania

What’s next for Cicada Mania?

Autumn (in North America) is usually a slow time for cicadas and this Cicada Mania website, so I have time to clean stuff up and decide what to do next to the site.

Now I turn to you, cicada fans, enthusiasts, and researchers: what would you like to see more of (or less of) on CicadaMania.com ? Please share your thoughts in the comments section of this post.

Looking forward, there’s the Brood I emergence next year in Virginia and West Virginia which should generate some buzz, and then Brood II in 2013 in the east which should be a big event.

Categories
Japan

Fukushima radiation possibly impacting cicadas in Japan

Update: @Zi_kade on twitter (he’s a cicada expert in Japan) said that these deformities were caused by wind. Good news.

Radiation from the Fukushima reactor is possibly impacting cicadas in Japan. I say possibly, because I don’t know for sure, but the following articles infer that radiation is playing a part in cicada deformities and complications during eclosing (when they shed their nymph skins and become adults). Looks like about 20% of cicadas are affected in the study mentioned in the articles. It will be interesting to see how this story plays out. If the affected cicadas were in areas that flooded during the tsunami, it could be their bodies were damaged by water soaking the ground or flooding their tunnels.

Breaking News: Radiation has started attacking DNA.

Photos of possibly affected cicadas:

奇形ゼミ続出、放射性物質は原発から300km地点にまで大量降下した.

奇形ゼミ続出、放射性物質は原発から300km地点にまで大量降下した.

Use Google Translate http://translate.google.com/ if you can’t read Japanese.