It's that time of year again! Rudy Mancke discusses the cicadas we've been hearing and seeing lately.
Transcript (edited for clarity):
RUDY MANCKE:
Hi, this is Rudy Mancke from USC for NatureNotes.
Cicadas are calling. Seems like these hot days just bring them out, and the hotter it is, the more loudly they call. That's that daytime buzz that everybody has been talking about.
The nymphs, the immature forms, develop underground. And then the nymph comes out, sheds its skin, and becomes an adult. Lives a very short life for an adult.
The males are the ones that make those loud buzzing sounds. They've got two little almost U shaped projections at the base of the abdomen that they vibrate.
And this is the time when you see cicada killer wasps who are coming to recycle those cicadas.
Females lay eggs in the branches, and the eggs are usually on the underside. They float to the ground and feed on sap from roots.
