Help needed to identify a very noisy insect!
January 6, 2010
Looks like a large green cicada and is approx. 7cm in length. However it has solid coloured wings unlike any cicada I have seen previously and has a swollen abdomen. Was making a very loud vibration noise that I initially thought was coming from an electricity transformer. Unfortunately where it was I couldn’t get a full photo.
Sarah
Sydney Australia
Bladder Cicada
Hi Sarah,
As you letter indicated, this is not an ideal photograph for identification purposes. At first we thought this must be a Katydid, and the Brisbane Insect website has a few photos of a False Leaf Katydid in the genus Mastigaphoides, family Pseudophyllinae, that didn’t look quite right. In attempting to locate additional online photographs, we stumbled upon a wonderful Conservation Report website on Leaf Mimic Animals. We suddenly remembered the Bladder Cicada, Cystosoma saundersii, and we found images that look correct on the Brisbane Insect website which states “The male Bladder Cicadas have the greatly enlarged abdomen, largely hollow. This is the resonating chamber to amplify the loudness of their songs.“ You may also listen to the call of the Bladder Cicada on the Brisbane Insect Website.
Hi Daniel,
Yes, that’s it, a Bladder Cicada! Thankyou so much for helping to identify it.
It has been driving my neighbour & I mad for the last week trying to workout
what was making the sound, as it started spot on 8.30pm every evening (right
when it gets dark) and would make a very loud, annoying vibrating noise for 30
mins -2hrs. Last night it had moved from being up near the roof, most likely in
a tree (hence I thought it was coming from something electrical), to her
carport, so we were able to locate it & determine the source!
Thanks,
Sarah
¶ Posted 06 January 2010 § ‡ ° cicada has a headlight?
November 6, 2009
In my closeup photo of a cicada’s (“a”) head, I noticed a bright red spot between his eyes, above his ‘nose’, which sure looked like a ruby-colored glass lens! I found the same thing on a second cicada (“b”), so it is not some weird anomaly. Also, it looks like there may be a cluster of the spots across his ‘forehead’, sorta like on a spider, but the other spots are aimed ‘up’, so I didn’t notice them at first. Maybe they’re additional eyes, maybe some other sort of sensors, but for sure, they do look strange!
seekertom
West Palm Beach, Fl
cicada with embedded camerain head???
How can I upload a pic of this guy to you? I have a decent frontal headshot which shows what looks like a red camera lens embedded into his skull. Couldn’t be a secret govt robot spy? could it?
Cicada Head
Dear seekertom,
We loved your first impression, and we have taken the liberty of posting both of your letters to us. Cicadas like most insects have three primitive eyes or ocelli as well as the two large compound eyes. The ocelli are sensitive to light and in conjunction with the compound eyes, they provide the insect with two distinct types of vision.
¶ Posted 07 November 2009 § ‡ ° Bug that looks like a huge bee.
September 11, 2009
I’ve seem these creatures in Zadar, Croatia. The bug is yellow and transparent and looks like a bee on steroids. It’s disgusting.
I’ve never seen them move. They stick to a tent or tree and just stay there. Ugly creatures. Oh yeah, and they’re crunchy 
2djman
Zadar, Croatia
Cicada Exuviae
Dear 2djman,
This is the cast off exoskeleton or exuviae of a Cicada. We get numerous requests for the identification of Cicada Exoskeletons, but your backlit photograph is quite possibly the most beautiful image we have seen. The immature Cicada lives underground, and when it approaches maturity, it digs to the surface, climbs up a tree trunk or other vertical feature, and splits its skin. We also have numerous images on our website of the metamorphosis of a Cicada. The winged adult then flies off, leaving the empty Exuviae behind.
¶ Posted 12 September 2009 § ‡ ° Tagged: Top 10 What is it?
August 28, 2009
Please help! I would like to identify this insect that I found on my windowsill in Thimpu, Bhutan. Your help MUCH appreciated. I fell in love with it. I should at least know what it is!
Entomophile
Thimpu, Bhutan
Cicada
Dear Entomophile,
Though we don’t know the exact species, we can tell you that your insect is a Cicada.
¶ Posted 29 August 2009 § ‡ ° Looks like giant fly
August 27, 2009
Keep seeing these all over my neighborhood.
Curiously, Sarah
Lansdowne, PA
Annual Cicada
Hi Sarah,
We have gotten multiple requests recently to have these giant flies identified. This is actually an Annual Cicada, most likely Tibicen canicularis, but they are frequently called Dogday Harvestflies. According to BugGuide: “Explanation of Names DOG-DAY: a reference to the hot “dog days” of late summer when this species is heard singing; at this time in the northern hemisphere the Dog Star (Sirius) becomes visible above the horizon in the Big Dog constellation (Canis Major) CANICULARIS: from the Latin “canicula” (a little dog, the Dog Star, Sirius) HARVESTFLY: another reference to the late season song of this species, heard during harvest time.”
¶ Posted 27 August 2009 § ‡ ° Tagged: Top 10 What’s this big bug?
August 20, 2009
Dear Bugman,
This morning I found this bug sitting in my driveway, it was most impressive so I decided to photograph it and it obliged. This is the largest bug I’ve ever seen in my area, and I’m sure I’ve never seen this type of bug before. I did some googling and I’m guessing it’s a type of cicada. I’d be pleased if you could give it a definite identification.
Many thanks! -Kendra
Northeastern Massachusetts
Dogday Harvestfly
Hi Kendra,
We are nearly certain that this is a Dogday Harvestfly, a species of Cicada, Tibicen canicularis, though BugGuide has six pages of Cicadas in the genus and it could easily be one of the others. Here is BugGuide’s explanation of the name: “DOG-DAY: a reference to the hot “dog days” of late summer when this species is heard singing; at this time in the northern hemisphere the Dog Star (Sirius) becomes visible above the horizon in the Big Dog constellation (Canis Major)
CANICULARIS: from the Latin “canicula” (a little dog, the Dog Star, Sirius)
HARVESTFLY: another reference to the late season song of this species, heard during harvest time” We responded to three other readers today who found Cicadas and thought they were flies, so we figured the zeitgeist demanded that we post an image before going to bed.
Dogday Harvestfly
¶ Posted 21 August 2009 § ‡ ° Cicada killer!!!
August 19, 2009
Thought you guys would like these cool pictures of a cicada killer (I think) attacking a cicada!!! I heard a weird buzz and saw them fighting so I ran and got my camera…enjoy!!!
Brian M
Baltimore, MD
European Hornet stings Cicada
Hi Brian,
Wow. What a fantastic action photo of a female Cicada Killer stinging a Cicada to feed her brood.
Correction
August 29, 2009
Hi, Daniel:
“Cicada killer stinging cicada” is actually a European hornet, Vespa crabro. They are large, pretty fearless predators on a variety of other insects. They will also raid bee hives for the honey, crushing worker bees in their massive jaws along the way.
Eric
Yet another cicada killer
August 12, 2009
My technique for getting interesting photos is to NEVER leave the house without a camera slung around my neck. I don’t always get excellent results, but at least I do get a lot of shots.
This cicada killer was buzzing around the neighborhood and I was able to follow it to a garage with a ladder conveniently close by that let me follow it into the gutter….
Pat
southwest lower michigan
Cicada Killer with prey
Hi Pat,
Because the Cicada prey weighs so much more than the Cicada Killer predator, the Cicada Killer often cannot take off from the ground to fly back to her burrow, so she climbs to a high spot and glides in the direction of her burrow. We suspect that is the reason you captured this photo in the gutter. Your documentation of a Cicada Killer and her prey is quite a score. Thanks for sending it to our site. We would much rather post photos of living insects than dead ones.
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