Cicada

Cicadas are between 1 to 2 inches long. Cicadas have large eyes set wide apart on the sides of the head, short antennae protruding between or in front of the eyes, and membranous front wings. Some cicadas produce sounds louder than 100 dB! They make their noise by wiggling their abdomens toward and away from the tree that they are on. Some species have 17 year life cycles, the Magicicada, which is widespread in the USA. Adults live about four to six weeks and their only mission is to mate and lay eggs. The female lays eggs usually on a twig and when hatched the larvae drop and burrow into the ground. Male adults produce a loud mating call, mostly in the late afternoon. Ahhhhh...the sound of summer. This photo was taken at my home in Azle, Texas.

More Facts
The cicada is related to the harvest fly. Some cicada's live underground for seventeen years. Cicadas suck juice from tree roots when they are larva. Once the female cicada comes above ground, she mates. Then she lays her eggs and dies. The cicada can lay four hundred to six hundred eggs. Adult cicadas live for thirty to forty days.