Cicada Species Research Articles

A new cicada (Hemiptera: Cicadidae) species from Brazil with a detailed description of the genus Parnisa Stål, 1862 and key to the known species

The new cicada species Parnisa infuscata sp. nov. is described, along with its calling song, from Minas Gerais State in Brazil. The genus Parnisa Stål, 1862 is redescribed to provide additional details on its morphology since the abbreviated original generic description was based only on a few wing characters. A key for the 14 known species of the genus is provided.

Ants prey on cicada hatchlings

ABSTRACT Temperate-zone cicadas are characterised among insects by their long-lived underground nymphal stages, which live for 5–20 years or more. Here we report the extensive occurrence of above-ground predation on eggs and first-instar nymphs of the common Japanese brown cicada, Graptopsaltria nigrofuscata, by colonial ants in a city park. Predation on eggs and first-instar nymphs by ants may be a major source of above-ground mortality rate in a population of this Japanese cicada species.

A new genus and species of cicada from Brazil (Hemiptera: Cicadidae: Tibicininae: Selymbriini)

The new cicada genus and species Striduloselymbria cabofrioensis gen. nov., sp. nov. is described. It is determined to be a member of Selymbriini Moulds & Marshall, 2018 and is unique in the presence of a mesonotal stridulatory apparatus.

The cicada (Hemiptera: Cicadidae) fauna of the Lesser Antilles sensu lato with the description of two new species, two new combinations, and a key to species

A summary and the known distributions of the cicadas of the Lesser Antilles sensu lato are provided. Fidicina guadeloupensis n. sp. from Guadeloupe and Herrera castaneanigricula n. sp. from Martinique are described as new. Carineta acclivis Sanborn, 2017b and Carineta martiniquensis Davis, 1934 are reassigned to become Herrera acclivis (Sanborn, 2017b) n. comb. and Herrera martiniquensis (Davis, 1934) n. comb. A total of 23 species, 13 genera, four tribes and two subfamilies are known to inhabit the various island chains with seven species being endemic to a single island. The majority (15 species) is found in the Republic of Trinidad & Tobago. More than half of the genera (eight) and species (12) represented in the Lesser Antilles are members of the Fidicinini Distant, 1905a. Herrera Distant, 1905b is the most diverse genus with five species recorded from the region, Proarna Stål, 1864 is also well represented with four species. Proarna hilaris (Germar, 1834) is the species with the greatest range expanding from the Virgin Islands to Trinidad in the Lesser Antilles. Finally, a key to the known cicada species of the Lesser Antilles is provided.

Activity responses of a mammal community to a 17-year cicada emergence event

Abstract During a limited period in the summer of 2021, 17-year cicada species (Magicicada cassini, M. septendecula, M. septendecim) represented a large pulse of easily accessible food unique to forest ecosystems in the eastern United States. Using trail cameras and acoustic recorders, we tested whether the activity levels of 8 mammal species in northwestern Indiana shifted in response to spatial and temporal variation in cicada densities from 18 May to 20 June 2021. Cicada densities varied temporally and spatially across all study sites. Most mammal species with sufficient data showed no response to cicada emergence, including 2 tree squirrel species, Peromyscus mice, Eastern Chipmunks (Tamias striatus), and 2 species of bats. Raccoons (Procyon lotor), likely cicada predators, showed a quadratic or more complex activity response to cicada abundance, indicating a potential saturation point at densities near 1 cicada per m2. Surprisingly, White-tailed Deer (Odocoileus virginianus) activity decreased to almost 0 at the same cicada densities when we expected no change in activity. While size or accessibility may exclude cicadas as prey for small and volant mammals, our results suggest predation and satiation by Raccoons. In contrast, deer may be avoiding areas of cicada abundance due to other stimuli, such as high noise output, which may decrease their ability to detect predators.

Segregation of endosymbionts in complex symbiotic system of cicadas providing novel insights into microbial symbioses and evolutionary dynamics of symbiotic organs in sap-feeding insects

The most extraordinary systems of symbiosis in insects are found in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha of Hemiptera, which provide unique perspectives for uncovering complicated insect-microbe symbiosis. We investigated symbionts associated with bacteriomes and fat bodies in six cicada species, and compared transmitted cell number ratio of related symbionts in ovaries among species. We reveal that Sulcia and Hodgkinia or a yeast-like fungal symbiont (YLS) are segregated from other host tissues by the bacteriomes in the nymphal stage, then some of them may migrate to other organs (i.e., fat bodies and ovaries) during host development. Particularly, YLS resides together with Sulcia in the “symbiont ball” of each egg and the bacteriomes of young-instar nymphs, but finally migrates to the fat bodies of adults in the majority of Hodgkinia-free cicadas, whereas it resides in both bacteriome sheath and fat bodies of adults in a few other species. The transmitted Sulcia/YLS or Sulcia/Hodgkinia cell number ratio in ovaries varies significantly among species, which could be related to the distribution and/or lineage splitting of symbiont(s). Rickettsia localizes to the nuclei of bacteriomes and fat bodies in some species, but it was not observed to be transmitted to the ovaries, indicating that this symbiont may be acquired from environments or from father to offspring. The considerable difference in the transovarial transmission process of symbionts suggests that cellular mechanisms underlying the symbiont transmission are complex. Our results may provide novel insights into insect-microbe symbiosis.

The complete genome sequences of two species of seventeen-year cicadas: Magicicada septendecim and Magicicada septendecula.

The genus Magicicada (Hemiptera: Cicadidae) includes the periodical cicadas of Eastern North America. Spending the majority of their long lives underground, the adult cicadas emerge every 13 or 17 years to spend 4-6 weeks as adult to mate. We present the whole genome sequences of two species of 17-year cicadas, Magicicada septendecim and Magicicada septendecula. The reads were assembled by a de novo method followed by alignments to related species. Annotation was performed by GeneMark-ES. The raw and assembled data is available via NCBI Short Read Archive and Assembly databases.

Verifying antibacterial properties of nanopillars on cicada wings

AbstractThe antibacterial properties of cicada wings originate from hexagonally arranged pillar-like multi-functional nanostructures with species-dependent heights, which are super-hydrophobic and self-cleaning. In the present study, two cicada species with promising nanopillars were investigated in more detail. Selected methods were used to analyze the wing surfaces, including Atomic Force Microscopy, Scanning Electron Microscopy, and bacterial tests with live/dead staining. Verifying the antibacterial properties posed challenges, such as the bacteria concentration needed to confirm the antibacterial properties. These challenges will also impact the practical implementation of antibacterial nanostructures and support the findings of recent critical publications.

A new species of Tanna Distant, 1905 from Yunnan, China (Hemiptera, Cicadidae, Cicadinae).

The genus Tanna Distant, 1905 (Hemiptera, Cicadidae, Cicadinae, Leptopsaltriini, Leptopsaltriina) currently includes 23 species (three tentatively placed), with its actual geographical distribution in China, Japan, Nepal, Bhutan, Cambodia, Thailand and Vietnam. Most of them, 16 species, are known from China, including one new species here described. A new species of cicada, Tannafengi Wang sp. nov., is described from Yunnan, southwest China. Colour plates are presented to illustrate all diagnostic characters. An updated list of Tanna species occurring in China is provided.

Chromosome-Level Genome Assembly and Annotation of a Periodical Cicada Species: Magicicada septendecula.

We present a high-quality assembly and annotation of the periodical cicada species, Magicicada septendecula (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha: Cicadidae). Periodical cicadas have a significant ecological impact, serving as a food source for many mammals, reptiles, and birds. Magicicada are well known for their massive emergences of 1 to 3 species that appear in different locations in the eastern United States nearly every year. These year classes ("broods") emerge dependably every 13 or 17 yr in a given location. Recently, it has become clear that 4-yr early or late emergences of a sizeable portion of a population are an important part of the history of brood formation; however, the biological mechanisms by which they track the passage of time remain a mystery. Using PacBio HiFi reads in conjunction with Hi-C proximity ligation data, we have assembled and annotated the first whole genome for a periodical cicada, an important resource for future phylogenetic and comparative genomic analysis. This also represents the first quality genome assembly and annotation for the Hemipteran superfamily Cicadoidea. With a scaffold N50 of 518.9 Mb and a complete BUSCO score of 96.7%, we are confident that this assembly will serve as a vital resource toward uncovering the genomic basis of periodical cicadas' long, synchronized life cycles and will provide a robust framework for further investigations into these insects.

Cicada species recognition based on acoustic signals using dynamic time warping-graph based GraphMix, graph convolution network

Cicada species recognition based on acoustic signals using dynamic time warping-graph based GraphMix, graph convolution network

Symbionts in Hodgkinia-free cicadas and their implications for co-evolution between endosymbionts and host insects.

Obligate symbionts in sap-sucking hemipterans are harbored in either the same or different organs, which provide a unique perspective for uncovering complicated insect-microbe symbiosis. Here, we investigated the distribution of symbionts in adults of 10 Hodgkinia-free cicada species of 2 tribes (Sonatini and Polyneurini) and the co-phylogeny between 65 cicada species and related symbionts (Sulcia and YLSs). We revealed that YLSs commonly colonize the bacteriome sheath besides the fat bodies in these two tribes, which is different with that in most other Hodgkinia-free cicadas. Co-phylogeny analyses between cicadas and symbionts suggest that genetic variation of Sulcia occurred in Sonatini and some other cicada lineages and more independent replacement events in the loss of Hodgkinia/acquisition of YLS in Cicadidae. Our results provide new information on the complex relationships between auchenorrhynchans and related symbionts.

Phylogenomics improves the phylogenetic resolution and provides strong evidence of mito‐nuclear discordance in two genera of a New Zealand cicada (Hemiptera: Cicadidae) species radiation

AbstractRapid species radiations present difficulties for phylogenetic reconstruction due to lack of phylogenetic information and processes such as deep coalescence/incomplete lineage sorting and hybridization. Phylogenomic data can overcome some of these difficulties. In this study, we use anchored hybrid enrichment (AHE) nuclear phylogenomic data and mitochondrial genomes recovered from AHE bycatch with several concatenated and coalescent approaches to reconstruct the poorly resolved radiation of the New Zealand cicada species in the genera Kikihia Dugdale and Maoricicada Dugdale. Compared with previous studies using only three to five Sanger‐sequenced genes, we find increased resolution across our phylogenies, but several branches remain unresolved due to topological conflict among genes. Some nodes that are strongly supported by traditional support measures like bootstraps and posterior probabilities still show significant gene and site concordance conflict. In addition, we find strong mito‐nuclear discordance; likely the result of interspecific hybridization events in the evolutionary history of Kikihia and Maoricicada.

The Improvement of Fluorescence In Situ Hybridization Technique Based on Explorations of Symbionts in Cicadas.

Fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH) with rRNA-targeted oligonucleotide probes is widely used for the identification of microbes in complex samples, but it suffers from some limitations resulting in the weak or even absence of fluorescence signals of microbe(s), which may lead to the underestimation or misunderstanding of a microbial community. Herein, we explored symbionts in the bacteriomes and fat bodies of cicadas using modified FISH, aiming to improve this technique. We initially revealed that the probes of Candidatus Sulcia muelleri (Sulcia) and the yeast-like fungal symbiont (YLS) are suitable for detection of these symbionts in all cicadas and some other species of Auchenorrhyncha, whereas the probe of Candidatus Hodgkinia cicadicola (Hodgkinia) is only suitable for detection of Hodgkinia in a few cicada species. The fluorescence signal of Sulcia, Hodgkinia and YLS exhibited weak intensity without the addition of unlabeled oligonucleotides (helpers) and heat shock in some cicadas; however, it can be significantly improved by the addition of both helpers and heat shock. Results of this study suggest that heat shock denaturing rRNA and proteins of related microbe(s) together with helpers binding to the adjacent region of the probe's target sites prevent the re-establishment of the native secondary structure of rRNA; therefore, suitable probe(s) can more easily access to the probe's target sites of rRNA. Our results provide new information for the significant improvement of hybridization signal intensities of microbes in the FISH experiment, making it possible to achieve a more precise understanding of the microbial distribution, community and density in complex samples.

Phylogeny of North Americas largest cicada radiation redefines Tibicinoides and Okanagana (Hemiptera: Auchenorrhyncha: Cicadidae: Tibicininae).

Tibicinoides, with three small endemic California cicada species, has a confusing, intertwined systematic history with Okanagana that we unravel here. An ingroup including all species of Tibicinoides and the majority (84.7%) of Okanagana species were sampled for six gene regions, polarized with Clidophleps, Okanagodes, Subpsaltria, and Tibicina outgroups, and subjected to Bayesian phylogenetic analysis. Although the ingroup was monophyletic from all outgroups including Tibicina, Tibicinoides rendered Okanagana paraphyletic among two major ingroup clades. To bring classification into agreement with phylogeny, we redescribe and redefine Tibicinoides to include all Okanagana species with a hooked uncus in the male genitalia, all of which grouped with the type T. cupreosparsa (Uhler, 1889) in the first of these clades: T. boweni (Chatfield-Taylor & Cole, 2020) comb. n., T. catalina (Davis, 1936) comb. n., T. hesperia (Uhler, 1876) comb. n., T. mercedita (Davis, 1915), T. minuta (Davis, 1915), T. pallidula (Davis, 1917a) comb. n., T. pernix (Bliven, 1964) comb. n., T. rubrovenosa (Davis, 1915) comb. n., T. simulata (Davis, 1921) comb. n., T. striatipes (Haldeman, 1852) comb. n., T. uncinata (Van Duzee, 1915) comb. n., T. utahensis (Davis, 1919) comb. n., and T. vanduzeei (Distant, 1914) comb. n. Okanagana is redescribed and restricted to the species of the second major clade which contained the type O. rimosa (Say, 1830). We describe two new genera for morphologically distinct orphan lineages: Chlorocanta gen. nov. for C. viridis (Davis, 1918) comb. n. and Hewlettia gen. nov. for H. nigriviridis (Davis, 1921) comb. n. We recognize O. rubrobasalis Davis, 1926 stat. rev. as a species and relegate two former species to junior subjective synonyms: O. noveboracensis (Emmons, 1854) = O. canadensis (Provancher, 1889) and O. occidentalis (Walker in Lord, 1866) = O. lurida Davis, 1919. Tibicinoides and Okanagana together represent a rapid radiation that presents challenges to phylogenetic analysis including suboptimal outgroups and short internodes.

Cicada-MET: an efficient ecological monitoring protocol of cicada populations

Cicadas are a fascinating group of insects that play an essential role in terrestrial ecosystems. Their long-lasting association with plant roots encourages their use as indicators of vegetation and soil integrity. Cicada-MET is a novel, standardized method for monitoring cicada populations by counting cicada exuviae (i.e., the skin of emerged nymphs), providing an effective and efficient means to study their distribution, abundance, and ecology. The method involves annual exuviae counts along transects and fixed plots sampled throughout the emergence season. We validated Cicada-MET using a database of 466 counts from 64 transects over 10 years and the sampling of 60 plots for one season. Methodological aspects tested included sampling speed, exuviae detectability in successive counts, exuviae loss due to weather, and cicada species detection performance using exuviae counts compared to auditory methods. Transects captured approximately 10% of the total number of emerged nymphs across one season, demonstrating the protocol’s reliability in estimating emerging cicada population numbers. However, caution is needed when inferring densities for larger areas, separated from paths where transects are located. The standardized nature of Cicada-MET reduces spatial and temporal biases, allowing for interspecific comparisons and monitoring interannual variations in abundances and emergence timing. This method is well-suited for studying the impact of natural and anthropogenic disturbances. The high-resolution data obtained can be easily combined with environmental variables, enhancing the value of cicada data as bioindicators. In summary, Cicada-MET offers a versatile and efficient tool for monitoring cicada populations, with applications in ecological indication, conservation, and management. The adaptability of Cicada-MET to various research questions, spatial scales, and long-term approaches, along with its quantitative accuracy and ease of use, make it a valuable resource for researchers and practitioners working with cicadas and their associated ecosystems.

A new species of Purana Distant, 1905 (Hemiptera, Cicadidae), from the Western Ghats, with comments on the erroneous records of Purana tigrina (Walker, 1850) in south India

A new species of cicada is described from south India. The new taxon, Purana cheeveeda Sadasivan sp. nov. is easily differentiated from all the other known species of the Purana tigrina species group based on its operculum apex not reaching beyond the anterior margin of sternite 3; tubercles on sternite 4 black and almost as large as those on sternite 3; relatively short rostral length reaching unction of abdominal sternite II and sternite III; the absence of dark fasciae on the transverse grooves of postclypeus, forewing venation, basal lobes of pygofer with large diverging triangular spines and the characteristic pentagonal uncus of the male. The status of Purana tigrina (Walker, 1850) from South India is discussed. The topotypes of the taxon commonly identified as P. tigrina from south India did not match the morphology of the holotype of P. tigrina. In addition, the study of the type specimen of P. tigrina demonstrated that the external morphology and male genital characters of the holotype of P. tigrina match that of P. tigrina from the Malayan region. Hence the type locality is mislabelled. This common taxon from southern India which has been traditionally misidentified is described here as a new species of Purana. As per Articles 76A.1.4 and 76A.2, of the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature (1999), the type locality of P. tigrina is hereby corrected as Malaysia. Based on the findings, P. tigrina is removed from the south Indian cicada fauna. The new species has some features common to both the Purana carmente group and Purana tigrina group, but most characters agree to Purana tigrina group, hence is tentatively placed in this group. The characters based on coloration may not be useful in species group classification in Purana, hence structural features like male genitalia and venation are taken to revise the existing species group keys. A modified key to the Purana species groups and members of the P. tigrina species group is also provided.

Species of the Euscelis Brullé Genus Damaged to Medicago in the Fergana Valley

The article presents materials on the study of herbivorous pests of Medicago in Fergana Valley from the order Homoptera, their species composition, the most harmful species of the EuscelisBrullé genus, their food relations, biological characteristics, harmfulness, features of development phases, their natural enemies were noted. It has been determined that the Cicadellidae family occupies a special place among the Homoptera; it is ecologically associated with various biotopes and plays an important role in agrobiocenosis. As a result of the research, it was revealed that the species of Homoptera, in particular cicadas, are characterized by complex bioecological features, highly specialized and well adapted for living in Fergana Valley. The studies are of practical importance, since some species of cicadas: Euscelis lineolata Brullé, Euscelis plebeius (Fallén)are pests of Medicago. The author revealed the harmfulness of cicada species found on Medicago, which is as follows: Insects suck juices from the vascular bundles of roots, stems, leaf veins and from leaf cells. They inflict wounds on the vegetative parts of the plant with their ovipositor during oviposition. Some species transmit viral plant diseases.

No Transcriptional Compensation for Extreme Gene Dosage Imbalance in Fragmented Bacterial Endosymbionts of Cicadas.

Bacteria that form long-term intracellular associations with host cells lose many genes, a process that often results in tiny, gene-dense, and stable genomes. Paradoxically, the some of the same evolutionary processes that drive genome reduction and simplification may also cause genome expansion and complexification. A bacterial endosymbiont of cicadas, Hodgkinia cicadicola, exemplifies this paradox. In many cicada species, a single Hodgkinia lineage with a tiny, gene-dense genome has split into several interdependent cell and genome lineages. Each new Hodgkinia lineage encodes a unique subset of the ancestral unsplit genome in a complementary way, such that the collective gene contents of all lineages match the total found in the ancestral single genome. This splitting creates genetically distinct Hodgkinia cells that must function together to carry out basic cellular processes. It also creates a gene dosage problem where some genes are encoded by only a small fraction of cells while others are much more abundant. Here, by sequencing DNA and RNA of Hodgkinia from different cicada species with different amounts of splitting-along with its structurally stable, unsplit partner endosymbiont Sulcia muelleri-we show that Hodgkinia does not transcriptionally compensate to rescue the wildly unbalanced gene and genome ratios that result from lineage splitting. We also find that Hodgkinia has a reduced capacity for basic transcriptional control independent of the splitting process. Our findings reveal another layer of degeneration further pushing the limits of canonical molecular and cell biology in Hodgkinia and may partially explain its propensity to go extinct through symbiont replacement.

Geological events and climate change drive diversification and speciation of mute cicadas in eastern continental Asia

The poor mobility of nymphs living underground, usually for many years, and the weak flying ability of adults make cicadas unique for evolutionary biology and bio-geographical study. Cicadas of the genus Karenia are unusual in Cicadidae in lacking the timbals that produce sound. Population differentiation, genetic structure, dispersal and evolutionary history of the eastern Asian mute cicada Karenia caelatata were investigated based on morphological, acoustic and molecular data. The results reveal a high level of genetic differentiation in this species. Six independent clades with nearly unique sets of haplotypes corresponding to geographically isolated populations are recognized. Genetic and geographic distances are significantly correlated among lineages. The phenotypic differentiation is generally consistent with the high levels of genetic divergence across populations. Results of ecological niche modeling suggest that the potential distribution range of this mountain-habitat specialist during the Last Glacial Maximum was broader than its current range, indicating this species had benefited from the climate change during the early Pleistocene in southern China. Geological events such as orogeny in Southwest China and Pleistocene climate oscillations have driven the differentiation and divergence of this species, and basins, plains and rivers function as natural “barriers” to block the gene flow. Besides significant genetic divergence being found among clades, the populations occurring in the Wuyi Mountains and the Hengduan Mountains are significantly different in the calling song structure from other populations. This may have resulted from significant population differentiation and subsequent adaptation of related populations. We conclude that ecological differences in habitats, coupled with geographical isolation, have driven population divergence and allopatric speciation. This study provides a plausible example of incipient speciation in Cicadidae and improves understanding of population differentiation, acoustic signal diversification and phylogeographic relationships of this unusual cicada species. It informs future studies on population differentiation, speciation and phylogeography of other mountain-habitat insects in the East Asian continent.