Cicadas of the genus ''Neotibicen'' are large-bodied

insect Insects (from Latin ') are pancrustacean hexapod invertebrates of the class Insecta. They are the largest group within the arthropod phylum. Insects have a chitinous exoskeleton, a three-part body ( head, thorax and abdomen), three pairs ...

s of the

family Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affinity (by marriage or other relationship). The purpose of the family is to maintain the well-being of its ...

Cicadidae Cicadidae, the true cicadas, is the largest family of cicadas, with more than 3,200 species worldwide. The oldest known definitive fossils are from the Paleocene, a nymph from the Cretaceous Burmese amber has been attributed to the family, but co ...

that appear in summer or early fall in eastern

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and the Car ...

. Common names include cicada, harvestfly, jar fly, and the misnomer locust. In 2015, these species were moved from the genus ''

Tibicen ''Tibicen'' is an historical genus name in the insect family Cicadidae (order Hemiptera) that was originally published by P. A. Latreille in 1825 and formally made available in a translation by A. A. Berthold in 1827. The name was placed on the Of ...

'' (now genus ''

Lyristes ''Lyristes'' is a genus of cicadas from Europe and the Middle East. It was described by G. Horvath in 1926. Many authors previously listed the species of ''Lyristes'' under genus ''Tibicen'' Berthold, 1827, which shares the same type species. Ho ...

'' Horvath, 1926), which was redefined in the twenty-first century to include only a few European species, while species from the Western

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

and

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

are now placed in a separate genus, ''

Hadoa The genus ''Hadoa'' comprises large-bodied Cicadidae occurring in Western North America. Until recently, these species were in the genus ''Tibicen'' (now genus ''Lyristes'' Horvath, 1926), which has now been redefined so as to include only a few ...

''. In addition, several former ''Neotibicen'' species have been moved to the genus ''

Megatibicen ''Megatibicen'' is a genus of cicadas in the family Cicadidae, with about 10 described species. Until 2016, these species were included in the genus '' Tibicen'' (now genus '' Lyristes'' Horvath, 1926) and then briefly in '' Neotibicen''. The s ...

''. ''Neotibicen'' species are the most commonly encountered cicadas in the eastern United States. Unlike

periodical cicada The term periodical cicada is commonly used to refer to any of the seven species of the genus ''Magicicada'' of eastern North America, the 13- and 17-year cicadas. They are called periodical because nearly all individuals in a local population a ...

s, whose appearances aboveground occur at 13- or 17-year intervals, ''Neotibicen'' species can be seen every year, hence their nickname "

annual cicada Annual cicadas are North American Cicadidae species that appear every summer. The life cycle of a so-called annual cicada typically spans 2 to 5 years; they are "annual" only in the sense that members of the species reappear annually. The name is u ...

s". Despite their annual appearances, ''Neotibicen'' probably take multiple years to develop underground, because all cicada species for which life cycle lengths have been measured do so, except when growing as agricultural pests. Their annual reappearance is presumably due to overlapping generations. ''Neotibicen'' cicadas are long, with characteristic green, brown, and black markings on the top of the

thorax The thorax or chest is a part of the anatomy of humans, mammals, and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main divisions of the cre ...

, and tented, membranous wings extending past the abdomen. The fore wings are about twice the length of the hindwings. Adults feed using their beak to tap into the

xylem Xylem is one of the two types of transport tissue in vascular plants, the other being phloem. The basic function of xylem is to transport water from roots to stems and leaves, but it also transports nutrients. The word ''xylem'' is derived from ...

of plants; nymphs feed from the xylem of roots.Elliott, Lang, and Wil Hershberger. 2007. ''The Songs of Insects''. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. p. 184.

Communication

Like other members of the subfamily

Cicadinae The Cicadinae are a subfamily of cicadas, containing the translucent cicadas. They are robust cicadas and many have gaudy colors, but they generally lack the butterfly-like opaque wing markings found in many species of the related Tibiceninae. ...

, ''Neotibicen'' species have loud, complex songs, even (in many cases) with distinct song phrases. Males produce loud calls in the afternoon or evening (depending on the species) to attract females. These sounds, distinctive for each species,Elliott, Lang, and Wil Hershberger. 2007. ''The Songs of Insects''. Boston: Houghton Mifflin. p. 19. are produced by specialized

tymbal The tymbal (or timbal) is the corrugated exoskeletal structure used to produce sounds in insects. In male cicadas, the tymbals are membranes in the abdomen, responsible for the characteristic sound produced by the insect. In tiger moths, the t ...

organs on the abdomen as in most cicadas. These calls range from a loud buzz to a long rattling sound, sometimes with a pulsating quality.

Species and subspecies

These species and subspecies belong to the genus ''Neotibicen''. Several species formerly in this genus were recently moved to ''

''. * '' Neotibicen auriferus'' (Say, 1825) – Field cicada * '' Neotibicen bermudianus'' (Verrill, 1902) – Bermuda cicada, PRESUMED EXTINCT * '' Neotibicen canicularis'' (Harris, 1841) – Dog-day cicada or dog-day harvestfly * '' Neotibicen davisi'' ** '' Neotibicen davisi davisi'' (Smith and Grossbeck, 1907) – Davis's southeastern dog-day cicada ** '' Neotibicen davisi harnedi'' (Davis, 1918) * '' Neotibicen latifasciatus'' (Davis, 1915) – Coastal scissor grinder cicada * ''

Neotibicen linnei ''Neotibicen linnei'', commonly called Linne's cicada, is a species of large bodied annual cicada in the genus ''Neotibicen''. It is native to the Eastern United States and Canada. ''N. linnei'' in Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw: ; chr, ...

'' (Smith and Grossbeck, 1907) – Linne's cicada * '' Neotibicen lyricen'' ** '' Neotibicen lyricen engelhardti'' (Davis, 1910) ** '' Neotibicen lyricen lyricen'' (De Geer, 1773) – Lyric cicada ** '' Neotibicen lyricen virescens'' (Davis, 1935) * '' Neotibicen pruinosus'' ** '' Neotibicen pruinosus fulvus'' (Beamer, 1924) ** '' Neotibicen pruinosus pruinosus'' (Say, 1825) – Scissor grinder cicada * '' Neotibicen robinsonianus'' (Davis, 1922) – Robinson's cicada * '' Neotibicen similaris'' ** '' Neotibicen similaris apalachicola'' Marshall and Hill, 2017 ** '' Neotibicen similaris similaris'' (Smith and Grossbeck, 1907) – Similar dog-day cicada * '' Neotibicen superbus'' (Fitch, 1855) – Superb southwestern cicada * '' Neotibicen tibicen'' ** '' Neotibicen tibicen australis'' (Davis, 1912) ** '' Neotibicen tibicen tibicen'' (= ''Tibicen chloromerus'') (Linnaeus, 1758) – Swamp cicada * '' Neotibicen winnemanna'' (Davis, 1912) – Eastern scissor grinder cicada

Predators

Many animals feed on cicadas, which usually occurs during the final days when they become easy prey near the ground. One of the more notable predators is the cicada killer. This is a large wasp that catches the dog-day cicada. After catching and stinging the insect to paralyze it, the cicada killer carries it back to its hole and drags it underground to a chamber where it lays its eggs in the paralyzed cicada. When the eggs hatch, the wasp larvae feed on the paralyzed, but still living, cicada.

Gallery

Image:Tibicen_chloromera_2005.jpg, Emerging ''N. tibicen'', New Jersey, USA Image:Malformed_Tibicen_chloromera.jpg, Malformed ''N. tibicen'', New Jersey, USA Image:Cicada_molting_animated-2.gif, Photo series of ''Neotibicen'' sp. moulting, Ohio, USA. File:Tibicen husks on fence 01.jpg, Husks left after moulting File:Mating Tibicen canicularis.jpg, Mating ''N. canicularis'' File:Cicada shell 1.jpg, Shell after molting, the head was up File:Cicada shell - close up of head.jpg, Close-up of the head area

References

External links

Massachusetts CicadasInsectSingers.com.
- acoustic signaling insects {{Taxonbar, from=Q24238626 Cryptotympanini Cicadidae genera