23 Sunday Aug 2015
Posted in az monsoon
Tags
A cicada crawling across our driveway. During the later part of the Az monsoon (that’s now) we see and hear large numbers of these insects. They spend most of their lives underground. During the monsoon season they emerge and transform into this flying form to mate and lay eggs. The racket they make, mostly in the evening, is to attract a mate.
Our rat terrier Suzie caught and ate a few of these today. The exoskeleton crunches like popcorn when she chewed it up.
01 Saturday Sep 2012
Posted in az monsoon, wildlife
Tags
The cicada was on a walkway by our house, still alive but just barely. These insects emerge from the soil in their larval stage, climb up a wall or tree, then their exoskeleton spits open and the flying form emerges. They mate and lay eggs for next years group. The flying adult version is around for a month or two during the Az monsoon season. They make a buzzing noise to attract a mate, which can be quite loud when hundreds of them do it at once.
Shortly after I took this photo one of my rat terriers caught and ate this individual.
