Family: Cicadidae, Cicadas view all from this family

Description 1 1/8" (27-30 mm); wingspan to 3" (77 mm). Stout. Black to brownish. Eyes bulging, dark red. Wings membranous with orange tinge and orange along basal 1/2 of fore wing front margin. Legs reddish. Undersurface of abdomen primarily reddish brown to yellow.

Food Sap of tree roots.

Sound An intense whining, rising and falling in pitch.

Life Cycle Mated female uses ovipositor to slit tree branch lengthwise, then wedges a series of eggs into the fresh crevice. Nymphs burrow into soil to reach tree roots, where they feed and grow very slowly, requiring 13-17 years to complete development. Each nymph crawls to nearest upright support, splits its skin, and transforms to an adult. The simultaneous appearance of thousands of cicadas during a few weeks overwhelms predators, permitting the great majority to mate undisturbed.

Habitat Deciduous and mixed forests, adjacent grasslands and pastures.

Range Mostly east of the Mississippi River, from the Great Lakes to the Gulf of Mexico.

Discussion Unlike cicadas of other genera, Periodical Cicadas emerge in a single locality only once every 13 or 17 years. Each synchronized population is called a brood. Some are large and occupy major areas of the United States, while others are small and cover less than 100 square miles. Only 14 broods of 17-year cicadas and 5 of 13-year cicadas are known to exist today. Broods that are separated by 4 years tend to overlap in geographic distribution, whereas those separated by only 1 year border each other geographically, without any overlap.