Categories
FAQs

What is the largest cicada?

The largest known cicada is the Megapomponia imperatoria (Westwood, 1842) of south-east Asia. The specimen in the photo below was captured in Malaysia and it’s wingspan measured 20 centimters/7.9 inches. Other species might be larger in terms of weight, but I’m not sure.

Megapomponia imperatoria
Photo of a Megapomponia imperatoria (formerly Pomponia imperatoria) by Michel Chantraine.

Other very large cicadas include the Bear Cicada of Japan (Cryptotympana facialis), and Tacua speciosa of south-east Asia.

Tacua speciosa (Illger, 1980) photos from Malaysia. The author of the image wishes to be anonymous.
Tacua speciosa from Malaysia by anonymous photographer.

The largest cicada in North America is the Megatibicen auletes:

Megatibicen auletes, the largest cicada in North America
Northern Dusk-Singing Cicadas aka Megatibicen auletes. Photo by me.

These very large cicadas are loud, but not the loudest. Learn about loud cicadas.

Categories
Locations

Cicadas of Africa

There are far more species in Africa than you’ll find on this page, but this is a start.

Click or tap the image for information about the cicada.

Afzeliada hyalina (Distant, 1905)

Antankaria signoreti (Metcalf, 1955)

Berberigetta

New Cicada: Berberigetta dimelodica

Brevisana

Brevisana brevis, the LOUDEST cicada

Cicadatra flavicollis Horváth, 1911

flavicollis

Ioba limbaticollis (Stål, 1863)

Koma bombifrons (Karsch, 1890)

Kongota punctigera (Walker, 1850)

Muansa clypealis (Karsch, 1890)

Munza laticlavia

Quintilla aurora

Quintilia aurora

Platypleura polydorus (Walker, 1850)

Tugelana butleri Distant, 1912

Ugada nutti Distant, 1904

Umjaba evanescens (Butler, 1882)

Yanga brancsiki (Distant, 1893)

Blog catagories

Categories
Argentina Brazil Ecuador Genera Paraguay

Cicadas of South America

There are far more species in South America than you’ll find on this page, but these are among the most well known.

Carineta Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Carineta diardi photo by Pia Öberg taken in Brazil
Carineta diardi photo by Pia Öberg taken in Brazil.

More about the Carineta genus, and Carinetini tribe.

Chonosia Distant, 1905

Chonosia crassipennis
Chonosia crassipennis photo.

More about the Chonosia genus, and Tettigadini tribe.

Fidicina Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Fidicina mannifera from Brazil, Photo by Leonardo Milhomem.
Fidicina mannifera from Brazil, Photo by Leonardo Milhomem.

More about the Fidicina genus, and Fidicinini tribe.

Hemisciera Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Hemisciera maculipennis (de Laporte, 1832)

More about the Hemisciera genus, and Piccinini tribe.

Majeorona Distant, 1905

Majeorona aper from Brazil, Photo by Leonardo Milhomem. 2005.
Majeorona aper from Brazil, Photo by Leonardo Milhomem.

More about the Majeorona genus, and Fidicinini tribe.

Quesada Distant, 1905

Quesada gigas from Brazil, Photo by Leonardo Milhomem
Quesada gigas from Brazil, Photo by Leonardo Milhomem.

More about the Quesada genus, and Hyantiini tribe.

Zammara Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Zammara smaragdina
Zammara smaragdina Walker, 1850.

More about the Zammara genus, and Zammarini tribe.

Tettigades Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Tettigades mexicana Insecta Rhynchota

More about the Tettigades genus, and Tettigadini tribe.

Blog posts by country:

Links for further research:

If you’re researching Cicadas in the Neotropic ecozone, which is Central and South America, here are some resources that will help you:

1) Follow Andreas Kay’s Flickr feed. He posts many excellent cicada photos from Ecuador. Many cicadas found in Ecuador are not endemic, so the cicadas you see in Andreas’ Flickr feed should be found in adjacent countries.

2) Visit Cigarras do Brasil – Brazilian Cicadas for photos and information about the cicadas of Brazil.

3) Read Jacobi (1907) “Homoptera Andina”. (Not sure where to find it – maybe eBay).

4) Read: Insecta. Rhynchota. Hemiptera-Homoptera. Volume I (1881-1905) by W. L. Distant and W. W. Fowler. It is available online. Here is a sample from that book:

Insecta. Rhynchota. Hemiptera-Homoptera. Volume I (1881-1905) by W. L. Distant and W. W. Fowler

5) Search for papers written by Allen F. Sanborn. Here is how to search for cicada research papers online.

6) Use ITIS to traverse cicada species names and get listings of papers about the cicada — then search for the cicada names and papers.

7) Many photos and sound files of Paraguayan cicadas.

Thanks again to David Emery!

Click the images for larger versions, the species name and the name of the photographer.

Categories
Croatia England France Genera Italy Slovenia Spain

Cicadas of Europe

Cicada Linnaeus, 1758

Cicada orni photos by Iván Jesus Torresano García. Spain. 2014.
Cicada orni photo by Iván Jesus Torresano García.

Euryphara Horváth, 1912

Euryphara contentei photos by Iván Jesus Torresano García. Spain. 2014.
Euryphara contentei photo by Iván Jesus Torresano García.

Hilaphura Webb, 1979

Hilaphura varipes photos by Iván Jesus Torresano García. Spain. 2014.
Hilaphura varipes photo by Iván Jesus Torresano García.

Lyristes Horváth, 1926

Lyristes plebejus photo by Iván Jesús Torresano García
Tibicen/Lyristes plebejus photo by Iván Jesús Torresano García

Galleries:

Tettigettalna Puissant, 2010

Tettigettalna argentata photo by Iván Jesus Torresano García
Tettigettalna argentata photo by Iván Jesus Torresano García

Blog Posts By Country:

Websites Dedicated to the Cicadas of Europe for further research:

  1. Songs of European Singing Cicadas. Many images, sound files and text content.
  2. SONGS OF CICADAS from Slovenia and Istria (Croatia) (arnes.si) Many cicada photos, sound files and about six paragraphs of information about the cicadas of Slovenia and Croatia by Prof.dr. Matija Gogala.
  3. La cigale : un insecte vraiment étonnant ! Lots of text content, photos and video of the cicadas of France.
  4. Species Action Plan: New Forest Cicada (Cicadetta montana) (ukbap.org.uk) A photo and about ten paragraphs of information. England.
  5. Welcome to the New Forest Cicada Project. A site devoted to finding the New Forrest Cicada in England.
  6. Cicadas of Spain. There are a lot of photos and video from Spain on Cicada Mania thanks to Iván Jesús Torresano García.

Click the images for larger versions, the species name and the name of the photographer.

Categories
Genera India Indonesia Japan Korea Malaysia Singapore Thailand Vietnam

Cicadas of Asia

Many species shown on this page are not endemic to a single country. Typically if a cicada can be found in one country in Indo-China (Cambodia, Laos, Malaysia, Myanmar, Singapore, Thailand, Vietnam), it will be found in many others, as well as southern China.

Ambragaeana Chou & Yau, 1985

ambragaeana ambra photo by Michel Chantraine
Ambragaeana ambra Chou & Yao, 1985. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Ambragaeana ambra is found in Indo-China and China.

Angamiana Distant, 1890

angamiana floridula photo by Michel Chantraine
Angamiana floridula Distant, 1904

Angamiana floridula is found in Indo-China and China.

Ayuthia Distant, 1919

Ayuthia spectabile Distant, 1919
Ayuthia spectabile Distant, 1919.

Ayuthia spectabile is found in Indo-China and China.

Becquartina Kato, 1940

Becquartina electa by Michel Chantraine
Becquartina electa (Jacobi, 1902) from Thailand. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Becquartina electa is found in Indo-China and China.

Becquartina versicolor Boulard, 2005
Becquartina versicolor Boulard, 2005 Thailand. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Becquartina versicolor is found primarily in Thailand, but I imagine it can be found in adjacent nations as well.

Callogaeana Chou & Yao, 1985

Callogaeana festiva festiva
Callogaeana festiva festiva (Fabricius, 1803). Formerly Gaeana festiva.

Callogaeana festiva festiva is found in Indo-China and China.

Chremistica Stål, 1870

Cicadmalleus

Cryptotympana Stål, 1861

cryptotympana aquila Photo by Michel Chantraine
Cryptotympana aquila (Walker, 1850) from Thailand. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Cryptotympana aquila has a huge range from Korea south to Indo-China, as well as, Borneo, Sumatra and Brunei.

C. arata A cicada photo from South Korea
Female Cryptotympana atrata (Fabricius, 1775) from Korea. Photo by Jon Allen.

Cryptotympana atrata has a large range from Indo-China north to Korea.

Cryptotympana mandarina. Michel chantraine.
Cryptotympana mandarina Distant, 1891. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Distantalna Boulard, 2009

Distantalna splendida formerly Tosena splendida
Distantalna splendida (Distant, 1878)

Dundubia Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Dundubia
Dundubia sp. Photo by Santisuk Vibul.

Dundubia spiculata
Dundubia spiculata Noualhier, 1896. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Euterpnosia Matsumura, 1917

Euterpnosia chibensis photos by Osamu Hikino. Japan.
Euterpnosia chibensis. Photo by Osamu Hikino.

Formotosena Kato, 1925

Formotosena montivaga (Distant, 1889)
Formotosena montivaga (Distant, 1889). Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Gaeana Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Gaeana cheni
Gaeana cheni Chou & Yao, 1985. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Hyalessa China, 1925

Hyalessa maculaticollis maculaticollis photo by Osamu Hikino. Japan.Hyalessa maculaticollis maculaticollis (de Motschulsky, 1866). Photo by Osamu Hikino.

Huechys Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Huechys sanguinea
Huechys sanguinea (Degeer, 1773). Photo by Michel Chantraine.

H. sanguinea can be found throughout Asia, including China, Indo-China, India & Pakistan.

Lyristes Horváth, 1926

Depending on who you ask, the Genus is Lyristes or Tibicen, so I’ll mention both. Wait — not it’s Auritibicen.

A. flammatus
Lyristes flammatus or Tibicen flammatus (Distant, 1892)

L. flammatus aka T. flammatus (there is some dispute over the name of the genus) can be found in Japan, Korea and China.

Macrosemia Kato, 1925

Macrosemia chantrainei Boulard, 2003
Macrosemia chantrainei Boulard, 2003. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Macrosemia tonkiniana (Jacobi, 1905)
Macrosemia tonkiniana (Jacobi, 1905). Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Macrosemia umbrata Cicada Found in Arunachal Pradesh, India by Raghu Ananth
Macrosemia umbrata. Photo by Raghu Ananth.

Orientopsaltria Kato, 1944

Orientopsaltria beaudouini Boulard, 2003
Orientopsaltria beaudouini Boulard, 2003. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Platylomia Stål, 1870

Platylomia radah
Platylomia radah (Distant, 1881). Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Platypleura Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Platypleura capitata by Raghu Ananth, taken near Mysore, India:
Platypleura capitata (Olivier, 1790). Photo by Raghu Ananth.

Pomponia Stål, 1866

Purana Distant, 1905

Salvazana Distant, 1913

Salvazana mirabilis imperialis Distant, 1918
Salvazana mirabilis imperialis Distant, 1918. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Salvazana mirabilis
Salvazana mirabilis mirabilis Distant, 1913

Sulphogaeana Chou & Yao, 1985

Mating Gaeana sulphurea from Bhutan taken by Jeff Blincow
Sulphogaeana sulphurea (Westwood, 1839).

Tacua Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Tacua speciosa (Illger, 1980) photos from Malaysia. The author of the image wishes to be anonymous.
Tacua speciosa (Illger, 1980). Photo by Anonymous.

Tailanga Distant, 1890

Tailanga binghami
Tailanga binghami Distant, 1890. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

T. binghami is found in China and the countries of Indo-China.

Tosena Amyot & Audinet-Serville, 1843

Tosena albata
Tosena albata
Distant, 1878. Photo by Michel Chantraine.

Trengganua Moulton, 1923

Blog Catagories:

Links for further research:

Southeast Asia

India

Japan

Cicada species names and locations verified using The Catalogue of the Cicadoidea (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha) by Allen F Sanborn.

Categories
Citizen Science Megatibicen

Cicada habitat in peril in Connecticut

Update: The hearing on the development of this property is May 14 at 7 p.m. but researchers can write testimony now and send it to Wallingford Planning and Zoning Commission, Wallingford Town Hall, 45 S. Main St., Wallingford, CT 06492.

Megatibicen auletes, the largest cicada in North America:
Megatibicen auletes, the largest cicada in North America

Anytime we remove trees, we reduce cicada habitat. Remove a small forest of trees and we might destroy the habitat for an entire species. North American cicada species need trees to survive and live out their life cycles, and certain cicada species require specific types of trees and specific environmental conditions. This is the case for Megatibicen auletes, also known as the Northern Dusk Singing Cicada, which prefers oak trees growing in sandy soil.

Megatibicen auletes habitat is in peril in Wallingford, Connecticut, where a rare sandplain is about to be excavated and turned into space for a warehouse. Read this article: Environmental concerns prompt questions of state oversight in Wallingford. After reading the article, it seems like there is still a chance to reverse plans to develop this area. I hope it does not happen, for the sake of the cicadas.

Megatibicen auletes is the largest cicada in North America. You can hear its remarkable call right after sunset in late summer months. I wonder how many residents of the Wallingford area knew that the largest cicada in North America lived in their community. I wonder how many people have heard the auletes’ scream right after sunset and wondered what creature made that sound. Hopefully, people will have another chance to hear them this summer, rather than the sounds of machines grinding up a forest, or the silence of yet another warehouse parking lot.

Categories
Books New Zealand

Cicadas of New Zealand guidebook

There’s a new guidebook out for the cicadas of New Zealand. The book was produced by 10-year-old Olly Hills — proof that there are few age barriers to scientific interest and research.

Website for the book.

Facebook page for the book.

Categories
Cicada Mania

Cicada Merch, Gift Ideas, T-Shirts, Mugs, Books – new Brood XIV designs

T-Shirts, Mugs & Merch:

Brood XIV Cicada Merch

The shirts have designs on the front and back.
2025 designs

One Piece for Babies

Brood XIV 2025 Cicada One-Piece outfit Baby Bodysuit
Brood XIV 2025 Cicada One-Piece outfit Baby Bodysuit
by cicadadesigns

Retro Style Shirt for Dudes

Retro 2025 Brood XIV Cicada Shirt
Retro 2025 Brood XIV Cicada Shirt
by cicadadesigns

Retro Style Shirt for Woman

Retro 2025 Brood XIV Cicada Women's Shirt
Retro 2025 Brood XIV Cicada Women’s Shirt
by cicadadesigns

Retro Style Shirt for Kids

Retro 2025 Brood XIV Cicada Shirt for Kids
Retro 2025 Brood XIV Cicada Shirt for Kids
by cicadadesigns

Brood XIV Mug

Brood XIV Cicada Mug
Brood XIV Cicada Mug
by cicadadesigns

Cicada Mania Mug

Cicada Mania Mug
Cicada Mania Mug
by cicadadesigns

50,000,000 Cicadas Can’t Be Wrong

50 Million Cicadas Can't Be Wrong T-Shirt
50 Million Cicadas Can’t Be Wrong T-Shirt
by cicadadesigns

Cicada Book for 2025

Gene Kritsky’s book for 2025.

The Pilgrims’ Promise: The 2025 Emergence of the Periodical Cicada Brood XIV

Classic Merch!

Cute Cicada Cartoon

Get it on a mug, shirt, or hat.

Cute Cicada Cartoon

Classic Cicada Mania Logo

Get the classic logo on a mug, shirt, or hat.

Roy’s Magicicada septendecim

Get the Magicicada septendecim on a mug, shirt, pillow, or hat.

Roy's Magicicada septendecim

Classic Magicicada Illustration

Get the Magicicada septendecim on a mug, shirt, or hat.

Roy’s Blue Eyed cicada

Get it on a mug, shirt, pillow, or hat.

Australia’s Green Grocer cicada

Get Australia’s Green Grocer cicada on a mug, shirt, or hat.

Green Grocer

Bug of Mystery

Get the Bug of Mystery on a mug or shirt.

Bug of Mystery

Here are some gift ideas for humans. Skip to a section: T-shirts & mugs, cicada books, periodical cicada books.

2024 Merch

A Zazzle store of cicada shirts, blankets and notebooks.

Cicada T-shirts

“Keep Calm, They’re Only 17-Year Cicadas” Shirts:

for Men or Women.

Random cicada things

Insect Mesh Cage/Pavillion

When people ask me where should they put live cicadas, I recommend a Butterfly Pavilion. If it works for butterflies, it typically works for cicadas.

Cicada Books

Cicadas Strange and Wonderful by Laurence Pringle illustrated by Meryl Henderson

Cicadas Strange and Wonderful is non-fiction and well-illustrated. It’s meant for kids, but anyone who collects cicada merch should also get it.

Cicadas of North America: The Season of the Cicadas by Les Daniels.

I’ve known Les since the 1990s. In the early days of Cicada Mania, Les contributed many images to the site. The Season of the Cicadas is his book about North American cicadas and features many of his photos.

Cicadas of Australia: A photo guide to common cicadas of the Greater Sydney region by Nathan Emery.

Nathan Emery and his father David Emery, who has contributed many cicada photos to this site, are experts on the subject of the cicadas of Australia. A photo guide to common cicadas of the Greater Sydney region is Nathan’s field guide. It features a wealth of information and beautiful photos.

A photo guide to common cicadas of the Greater Sydney region

Periodical (17 & 13 Year) Cicada Books

The Pilgrims’ Promise: The 2025 Emergence of the Periodical Cicada Brood XIV

Dr. Gene Kritsky has devoted his life to studying and promoting periodical cicadas. The Pilgrims’ Promise: The 2025 Emergence of the Periodical Cicada Brood XIV is his book for the 2025 periodical cicada emergence.

Cicada: Exotic Views by Davy Shian.

Cicada: Exotic Views is a perennial classic about periodical cicadas. This book is illustrated with cartoons, like a comic book. It focuses on the diversity of reactions people have to periodical cicadas.

For Kids: Cecily Cicada

Cecily Cicada is an illustrated story about a cicada named Cecily, updated for 2020. Every 17 years the author asks me to promote it on CicadaMania.com. 🙂

Categories
Allen F. Sanborn Maxine E. Heath

Second edition of Cicadas of North American North of Mexico

Allen F. Sanborn and Maxine S. Heath have released the second edition of their book Cicadas of North American North of Mexico.

What’s new:

The second edition includes the addition of four new genera, the removal of two genera, and the addition of a few new species that were described since the first edition. We also added distributional data for all species.

Purchase a copy online from the Entomological Society of America.

Related articles:

Categories
David Marshall John Cooley Kathy Hill Massospora Mating Papers and Documents

New paper: Massospora cicadina hijacks the sexual signals of periodical cicadas

A new paper, A specialized fungal parasite (Massospora cicadina) hijacks the sexual signals of periodical cicadas (Hemiptera: Cicadidae: Magicicada), has been published by John R. Cooley, David C. Marshall & Kathy B. R. Hill, in Scientific Reports 8, Article number: 1432 (2018).

Read the paper online.

In a nutshell: the fungus infects males and causes them to exactly mimic the mating behavior of female cicadas, thus infected males end up spreading the fungus to uninfected males.

Abstract:

Male periodical cicadas (Magicicada spp.) infected with conidiospore-producing (“Stage I”) infections of the entomopathogenic fungus Massospora cicadina exhibit precisely timed wing-flick signaling behavior normally seen only in sexually receptive female cicadas. Male wing-flicks attract copulation attempts from conspecific males in the chorus; close contact apparently spreads the infective conidiospores. In contrast, males with “Stage II” infections that produce resting spores that wait for the next cicada generation do not produce female-specific signals. We propose that these complex fungus-induced behavioral changes, which resemble apparently independently derived changes in other cicada-Massospora systems, represent a fungus “extended phenotype” that hijacks cicadas, turning them into vehicles for fungus transmission at the expense of the cicadas’ own interests.

And now, because I need an image for the post: a meme:

Fungus Bae

Cicadas, when infected, are called “salt shakers of doom”. Add that to the meme “Salt Bae”, and the image makes sense.