In the hottest part of summer in Japan, we always hear cicada song everywhere regardless of city or country. It’s no exception in the copse garden, and the big chorus of cicadas is so loud that it’s hard to hear even conversations.
By the way, the cicada is a caterpillar larva while in the ground. And in order to become an adult with wings, it is necessary to transform itself into “emergence”. The “emergence” can be seen in the parks and gardens at dusk from late July to mid August. The observation of “emergence” is also a summer feature of my copse garden.
Furthermore, cicadas may crumple their wings or fall down, so emergence may be a life threat. It seems the periods staying underground depends on the type, but it is really mysterious how larvae that lived in the ground for several years undergo acrobatic emergence to become adult. Immediately after that, the cicada is semi-transparent and very beautiful.
Observation of cicada emergence
During emergence, cicadas are left unprotected, so they prefer darkness to escape from natural enemies. Although cicadas do not move when emergence begins, they still dislike bright places. Let us observe quietly in the dark.
Larvae from the soil climb trees and sticks to a safe place and become immobile. After that,emergence begins quietly from the head. It takes 1-2 hours for the emergence to end.
Front view of emergence cicada
This is a video of the emergence of a cicada seen from the front. The greenish wings are very beautiful. I made a video of several minutes by connecting photos of the emergence of cicadas that took several hours. It is very exciting that the small folded wings open wide.
Side view of emergence cicada
This is a cicada emergence from the side. Similarly, I put together photos and made a video of a few minutes of the emergence of a cicada that takes several hours.
If you haven’t seen it, I would like you to see for yourself how it emerges dynamically while catching exquisitely in the shell.
If you look carefully at your feet in a place where many cicada shells are often seen at dusk, you may be able to find cicada larvae that are heading for emergence.