I was outside in the heat pushing my granddaughter on a swing the other day and saw this:

An annual cicada was popping out of its shell. At first, I thought it had died that way. It was so still and of course, with an exoskeleton, it didn’t look like it was breathing. Gradually, it struggled until its wings were out.

 Busting out of the exoskeleton is difficult and not all cicadas emerge unscathed. Some have broken or shriveled wings.

This one was lucky. It looks like a female because the abdomen is pointy. The transparent wings fluoresce blue-green. (490 nm)

The wings come out wet but dry into a plastic-like hardness which is water resistant and antibacterial.

Getting all the way out of the shell took a while, around twenty minutes or so.

Hello sunlight!

Cicada wings are made of many compounds and take about a half hour to dry and harden. The underside of the wing contains proteins and lipids, much like skin, and the outer part of the wing is polymerized hydrocarbons, a plastic. The wings are heavy and cicadas aren’t great fliers.   No surprise then that the new cicada flew to the ground and took off walking, looking for a tree to climb.

Cicadas are a favorite symbol in France, especially in Provence. They symbolize rebirth and ecstasy because of their enthusiastic singing. Only the males sing; they have drums on their undersides. You can see the tan drums here on this cicada corpse.

August is the prime month for cicadas. Once they emerge from their shells, cicadas live for 4-6 weeks, time enough to find a mate. The mating takes about a half hour.

The female will lay her eggs in a nearby tree. In about six week, they’ll hatch and the nymphs will fall to the ground and burrow in.

I have to admit, the struggle is real for me, too, as summer ends and we go back to normal time and its flurry of activity. 

The cicadas will soon be underground, silently sipping on tree roots, and burrowing deep to escape the cold. Enjoy them and the last sips of summer while you can!