annual cicadas - Mud Puddles to Meteors

what ’ s that ?
annual cicadas
Tibicen canicularis
* The annual cicada is the most common cicada in the U.S. It is also known as the "dog day"
cicada because they emerge as adults during the "dog days" of summer (July and August). This
predictable timing has made them a feature of folk culture: many traditions have risen up around
predicting things like the first frost based on the timing of cicadas appearing in the summer.
* Cicadas feed on sap, using a proboscis to pierce plants and feed on them. Annual cicada nymphs
feed on the sap found in tree roots, often preferring pine and oak.
* In many parts of the world, cicadas are eaten and are considered a wonderful delicacy. The dried
and empty nymph skins are also used in Traditional Chinese Medicine. (Strange but true: When
Annie's daughter had seizures as a toddler, she drank cicada tea as "medicine.")
* Annual cicadas actually have a longer life span than their name would suggest. Indeed, nymphs
take at least two years to grow into full-sized adults.
* Sometimes annual cicada nymphs can take as long as nine years to grow into adults! But the average is more along the lines of two to five years.
*As they mature, cicada nymphs continually grow too large for their skin. When this happens, they
molt and grow a new, larger skin.
*Annual cicada nymphs molt five times before becoming adult cicadas.
*At the time of the final molt, the cicada nymph anchors itself to a stationary object (such as a
tree trunk) and climbs out of its nymph skin, emerging as a full formed adult cicada. The empty
exoskeleton is left behind, and this is the evidence of the cicada that is most often seen by those
of us looking for them.
* The noisy "singing" of the cicada is done by the male of the species.
Copyright Anne Riechmann and Dawn Smith, Mud Puddles to Meteors, 2013
Use these photos for nature journals, lap books, or insect reports.
Copyright Anne Riechmann and Dawn Smith, Mud Puddles to Meteors, 2013
word cloud
These words can be cut out and used for creating poetry, lap book projects,
nature journaling, or anything else you can imagine.
cicada
nymph
molt
dog day
Tibicen
exoskeleton
insect
proboscis
sap
Copyright Anne Riechmann and Dawn Smith, Mud Puddles to Meteors, 2013
winged
my creature fact sheet
annual cicadas
what i know
what i ’ d like to find out
use this space for a photo or sketch of an annual cicada
Copyright Anne Riechmann and Dawn Smith, Mud Puddles to Meteors, 2013
Annual Cicadas: A Word Search
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