📸 PhotoPhoto: Public domain · Public domain · Wikimedia Commons Source
Periodical cicada
Magicicada septendecim (Periodical cicada · Periodical cicada)
💡 Everyday Comparisons for Size, Mass & Speed
- 💡 A body length of 1.5 inches (about 38 mm) is about 1.4 times the diameter of a Korean 500-won coin (26.5 mm) (Comparison).
- 💡 Its very long 17-year life cycle and mass emergence are fascinating and heavily studied by scientists (Animal Diversity Web).
Reference standards: coach bus ~12 m, mid-size car ~4.9 m, compact car ~1 t, basketball hoop 3.05 m, credit card 8.56 cm.
📖 1. Overview
The periodical cicada is the largest of the periodical cicadas that emerge all at once above ground after spending 17 years underground.
🦴 2. Anatomy & Morphology
Its body is black, its eyes and legs are reddish orange, and its wings are transparent with orange veins. It is distinguished from other species by the broad orange stripes on the underside of the abdomen and an orange spot on the side of the thorax.
🔍 3. Ecology & Behavior
Nymphs suck sap from tree roots underground for 17 years, then build exit tunnels in spring and emerge together. Emerging in large broods is explained as a way to overwhelm predators, and females lay eggs in tree twigs.
🇰🇷 4. Connection to Korea
No direct record connecting this species to Korea has been found.
📚 Sources & References
- • IUCN Red List NT (1996) — https://www.iucnredlist.org/species/12691/3373584
- • IUCN Red List category NT — latest assessment at iucnredlist.org
- • catalogueoflife.org — 3XGV3
- • iucnredlist.org — 3373584
- • wikidata.org — Q1949538
- • commons.wikimedia.org — File:Magicicada septendecim.jpg
- • animaldiversity.org — Magicicada septendecim
- • Silhouette: PhyloPic — Caleb Gordon · CC0 1.0 (Congeneric silhouette — Magicicada)
Recorded dimensions are widely cited representative estimates from public literature and may vary by study or specimen.