Subject: THIS INSECT
Geographic location of the bug: MICHIGAN
Date: 07/30/2018
Time: 03:04 PM EDT
Your letter to the bugman: WHAT IS THE NAME OF THIS INSECT.I FOUND IT IN THE BACKYARD DEAD.
How you want your letter signed: DEAR
Dear DEAR,
The short answer is that this is an Annual Cicada or Dogday Cicada in the genus Neotibicen. Its markings are quite unusual, and we believe we have correctly identified it as a Western Lyric Cicada, Neotibicen lyricen lyricen, thanks to images posted to BugGuide. According to BugGuide: “Adults often congregate in large numbers during the heat of the day to feed/drink on the sap of several hardwoods (preferred adult hosts seem to incl. Pecan, Hickory, Walnut, Wild Cherry, Apple, Pear + many other species in the rose and walnut families).” Are you certain it was dead? It legs appear to be in different positions in your images, and according to BugGuide: “Behavioral note: When ALIVE, lyric cicadas will usually tuck their legs tightly to the sides of their body and ‘play dead.'”
