Here’s a follow up to a post of last week in which I mentioned the cicadas.
Kate McIlwain, from our local newspaper The Advertiser, has written an article (Wed 17 Jan, 2018) on the current cicada explosion. She quotes Dr Nathan Emery of the Australian Botanic Garden in Mount Annan as saying that “the 2017-18 season is the loudest since at least 2013.”
“We’ve had a mass emergence of a number of species including the Razor Grinder, Red Eye, Double Drummer, Green Grocer and Black Prince, he continues.”
(Click on the cicada name to view an image of each variety).
“Anecdotal evidence suggests they (cicadas) spend 6-10 years underground, with the last good season being in 2010. A dry, warm winter and heavy rainfall in March may be contributing factors . . . they hedge their bets and emerge over several months.”
“During their (above-ground) lifespan of one to four weeks, their sole purpose is to find a mate, using their frenzied call which can reach up to 120 decibels.”
So our little resident, who I photographed last week . . .
. . . has achieved his purpose. In the below photo , taken recently on our balcony which is on the fifth floor, two cicadas – one out of shot – are laboriously crawling towards him, one sticky leg at a time. Meanwhile he (on the left) is singing as if his life depends on it (couldn’t resist that one).
And just to remind you what that singing sounds like, here is a repeat of the recording I did for the previous post. And I repeat my WARNING – DO NOT HAVE THE VOLUME AT FULL BLAST !!!
The Reluctant Retiree 
Oh my! These look scary, if they came inside I’d freak.
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They are cute. Aussie children often used to catch them. Now a cockroach is a different matter. When they come in the house, we stomp on them! You’re allowed to freak over cockroaches- seeing as how you’re English and not used to them 🙂
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Now that is NOISEY! Makes me think of hot weather.
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It’s the sound of an Australian summer. Very comforting . . . and deafening when they are all at it together.
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How about that! All those different kinds of cicadas, always thought a cicada was just a cicada, and theres lots of ’em.
Now I only have to work out which of this lot is the type that I have buzzing inside my ears/brain all day every day and perhaps I can eradicate them and hear clearly again
Fascinating 🙂
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Glad that piqued your interest. Apparently they can send you deaf if they get near your ear. I went to an ear clinic recently, had a mild tinnitus. He told me my eustachian tubes are blocked and to use an antihistamine nasal spray for a few weeks. You have to use a special manoeuvre to get it in the right place. It worked. That’s all I can offer.
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YIKES!!!!
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Well done, and I do like the idea of those two visiting so close.
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One happy cicada – just as you predicted.
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It is an amazing sound – first heard by me in France a few years back
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I used to think they were unique to Australia. Now I know better of course, but I still think of it as a uniquely Australian sound.
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The accent is probably unique 🙂
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Oh wow, this is an interesting post! Having spent quite a bit of time in Africa over the past few years I’ve developed a whole new respect for insects and the power they have to wreak havoc on the world! Since I like to sleep with the windows open to listen to the sound of the Indian Ocean, I was pondering a post from Durban describing my nightly flying and crawling visitors. Cicadas are indeed formidable insects! I remember them from a visit to Siem Reap in Cambodia. When they come out at dusk their sound absolutely dominates the entire Angkor Wat landscape! The Double Drummer looks very naughty!
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I think most Aussies are fond of our cicadas. Such a distinctive sound, usually connected with bushland. Never had them on the seaside balcony before 🙂
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