This blog (my first nature post) was inspired by an email I got from Eric's mom the other day to tell me about the recent arrival of the cicadas in Huntington. Though I had heard of cicadas before, I didn't really know that much about them. Anyway, Nita's description of these creatures fascinated me. She described them as something out of a horror movie - 3 inch long insects with red eyes that bury underground and only emerge every 17 years! So me being the inquisitive person that I am immediately googled them, and she was absolutely right! Above is a photo of said cicada. Red beady eyes, as described by Nita. Notice also the strange horror film-like deadpan expression.
I'm not an insectophobe. Well, not really. But there is something about seeing swarms of insects that gets my skin crawling (have a look at the above photo and see if it doesn't do the same to you). Apparently these cicadas don't bite or sting. They do however make quite a racket, a kind of relentless high-pitched noise, and they tend to wreck trees and shrubs where they bury their eggs. They will hatch and then fall to the ground before burying underground. And then they'll stay there for another 17 years. Fascinating eh? I think worst of all is that there are so many of them - millions apparently so that they get into everything. One tried to ambush Nita the other day by hiding in her washing. The coward! Anyway, this is an invite to my American family to post your favourite cicada stories in the comments section. The more horror film-like the better! Speaking of which check out the molting cicada below!
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This blog (my first nature post) was inspired by an email I got from Eric's mom the other day to tell me about the recent arrival of the cicadas in Huntington. Though I had heard of cicadas before, I didn't really know that much about them. Anyway, Nita's description of these creatures fascinated me. She described them as something out of a horror movie - 3 inch long insects with red eyes that bury underground and only emerge every 17 years! So me being the inquisitive person that I am immediately googled them, and she was absolutely right! Above is a photo of said cicada. Red beady eyes, as described by Nita. Notice also the strange horror film-like deadpan expression.
I'm not an insectophobe. Well, not really. But there is something about seeing swarms of insects that gets my skin crawling (have a look at the above photo and see if it doesn't do the same to you). Apparently these cicadas don't bite or sting. They do however make quite a racket, a kind of relentless high-pitched noise, and they tend to wreck trees and shrubs where they bury their eggs. They will hatch and then fall to the ground before burying underground. And then they'll stay there for another 17 years. Fascinating eh? I think worst of all is that there are so many of them - millions apparently so that they get into everything. One tried to ambush Nita the other day by hiding in her washing. The coward! Anyway, this is an invite to my American family to post your favourite cicada stories in the comments section. The more horror film-like the better! Speaking of which check out the molting cicada below!
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