Teeny Tiny Cicada
I found the smallest Cicada today…I’ve been amazed by them all my life and never had any idea they came so tiny! In my online search for the tiny darlings (I thought I may have found a new species…haha) I came across your phenomenal site and had to say, ‘Wow, you are awesome as is your website!!’ I’ve been browsing for hours now…Thank you!!! I will attach photos…including a strange butterfly/moth?? and a Huge beetle (my daughter named it Fancy…hehe…She’s also a Bug Lover! Have a Fabulous Sunday :0) , Thanks again…
Chauntelle Grigsby
Boerne, Texas
Hi Chauntelle,
We thought you grew everthing larger in Texas!!! We must confess we are not certain about what your Cicada is exactly. We think it looks similar to a Beameria venosa posted to BugGuide that is also from Texas. Your photo shows more detail, so perhaps a cicada expert can provide more details. The butterfly is a newly metamorphosed Great Purple Hairstreak.
Update: June 29, 2016
A new comment today caused us to update this posting and to look for other examples of Beameria venosa online. iNaturalist has a very nice image.
Update: February 4, 2020
A new comment suggests this Cicada is Pacarina puella. According to BugGuide, the common name is the Little Mesquite Cicada and it is referred to as a “Tiny cicada with a BIG head”
I have found 2 of these itty bitty cicadas this summer, I am in Sanger, which is on I-35, about 30 miles south of the TX / OK state line. There is a large population of the regular sized cicadas in this area and the little ones look much like them, just very petite !!
Sure would like to know what they are …. Nancy
I have found 2 of these itty bitty cicadas this summer, I am in Sanger, which is on I-35, about 30 miles south of the TX / OK state line. There is a large population of the regular sized cicadas in this area and the little ones look much like them, just very petite !!
Sure would like to know what they are …. Nancy
I saw one of these on my porch just now. I live in Plano, TX. I’ve seen it a couple of times in the last month. Proportioned exactly like the normal cicadas, but out half as long. I got it to crawl around on the tip of my index finger. Very cool. I also wonder what species it is.
i just found one for the first time in my 39 years on this property.
Beameria venosa sighting! Denton, Tx. They are cute little buggers!
I saw my first last week and now I walk out on the back porch and there are 2 more. Glad to finally know what I’ve been seeing!
In Richardson
I live in Bailey, Tx and believe I’ve seen two Beameria Venosas as well. Didn’t know they existed!
This is so weird lol i live in north TX andjust found two of the tiny lil fellas on my porch tonight! Came across this site while googling age of cicadas lol
I live in San Antonio and have have several of these itty bitty guys through the years. I just thought they were runts. They’re awesome… Like micro machines but alive.
Been seeing the tiny ones here in Kansas City!
Found one today in Austin,TX near the Travis/Hays County Lines.
I saw one last week in the yard, and just now found one in my house. So tiny! I used to look for emerging cicadas as a a child in Kansas, and didn’t realize they came in a small version, also. I live in Georgetown, TX.
Found one in Austin (Lost Creek) on June 23, 2017
I just had one land on my face haha. It is a male and that call is pretty cute. Are these full grown?
Once they have emerged as winged adults, the Cicada has finished growing.
I live in San Antonio, TX and I just had my first encounter with a tiny cicada. I had no idea they existed and I’m always looking out for strange bugs. Tiny Cicadas are adorable!
Just found a tiny cicada yesterday. Grayish with paler eyes. It’s body was barely half an inch.
Found one in southeast MS while camping and was dumbfounded! Seen the bigger ones my entire life in the south but never that small. I thought I was seeing things.
One landed on my arm about 10 minutes ago (in relation to this post). I couldn’t believe my eyes as this was a cicada but much smaller than I’d ever seen before. Thanks to Google I found this website and discovered what it was. I’m in Houston, TX so they’ve made it this far into Southeast Texas.
What I found was less than a 1/4 in long. And there were 3-4 dozen of f them.
I found one last year in my back yard. It was shedding its shell while hanging from a blade of grass. I live in Richardson, Texas(north of Dallas). I saved the shell as proof that I actually saw this little critter. This one was less than an inch long.
I found one of the tiny nymphs on a sidewalk in a park in Grand Prairie yesterday evening. It was raining so I could not get a photo but I moved it out of the rain into a dry area where it could continue it’s journey.
They’re emerging in City of Hempstead, Waller County. I found two in as many days. Nice little critters; I find one crawling all over my work glove. cCc
It’s been a few years since the original post but since it has sporadically garnered interest over the past three or so years, it should be noted that the cicada is Pacarina puella. It’s actually a little bit larger than Beameria venosa and is associated with mesquite, when present, throughout its range in Texas. The easiest differentiating morphological trait are the wide set eyes. Beameria venosa is covered more generously in pruinosity (white powdery wax) and has more wing infuscation (darkness) in the apical (outer) forewing veins. Cicadas of the genus Cicadettana are also tiny.
Thanks for the correction on this posting. We will make some adjustments.
I saw a bug darting around in the garden tonight after dark. I was following it with the beam of my flashlight until it landed on my shirt. It was the smallest cicada I had ever seen. First I thought it was a baby before thinking about it more and realizing they are adults once they leave their shells. Had no idea they came in a small species variety lol. Very cool!
I live in the mid Atlantic where we are waiting for the periodic 17 year Brood X cicadas to emerge in about a month. When I was a kid, though, we lived in the Dallas area. I used to catch the annual cicadas and keep them on our screened porch. One time I found a tiny one. Back then, I thought it was a baby. Now I understand, of course, that they emerge after their larval stage full sized, so I did a little searching today and found this. So fun!
Found one in San Anotonio today. Never knew these tiny versions existed until now.
Found one on my back patio in Dallas, TX last night!!!!
I just found one in Krum Texas.
Found one in my sink after bringing in veggies from the garden yesterday! Cute little thing, took him outside and put him in my sage….he was a bit wet since I didn’t see him till I already started running the water in my sink! Hopefully he dried out and flew where he needed to be….
I live in Weatherford, Texas.
I have seen the occasional Cicada, I’ve seen the nymphs
This year I’ve seen over 15 miniature adult cicadas.
I’ve seen only 5 normal adults, and 3 normal nymphs.
I have one mini cicada pinned with other insects.