Grant County herald. [volume] (Lancaster, Wis.) 1850-1968, 1871-06-13
seventeen-Year Locust-Cicada.

vicinity our readers may be interest
ed to learn some of the facts in re.
gard to this curious insect. In the
first place we should discard the
name Locust" as it is not locust
or anything like one except in its ap-
pearing in great numbers. Ctcada Is
the name given by naturalists to this
insect. The Locust is very yoraciouf
and differs but little from the grass
hopper.
The Cicada more resembles q fly,
and never really eats anything. II
has o beak or bill through which il
sucks the juices from the twigs and
branches of trees, and having neither
mouth, teeth or jaws could not de.
YOUR the tenderest leaf All insects
undergo certain transformations that
require from few weeks to a year
or more to complete their whole
course. The Cicada lives II years,
and during all this time remains un.
foreground in the larva state, except
few weeks that they live after ma.
king their appearance in the open
air. There is nothing like this
known in the whole range Of Natur.
al History.
There are in the Southern States
several broods of the 13-year Cicada,
although there is no perceptible DIFF.
ference between them and the others
1t is remarkable that in every brood
of Cicade there are two sizes-the
large size being the much more mum.
erous. They are different in size,
color and voice and never intermarry,
but never one appears without the
other.
The Cicada energies from the
ground during the last half of May,
and are gone by the 4th of July,
though circumstances and seasons
have some feet. The males only
sing, and appear and leave several
days before the females. The trans
formation usually occurs in the eve-
ming. The insect attaches itse f to
some object, the skin or case bursts
on the back aad in a few moments
the Cicada is free. 1t is then white
and soft in less than an hour the
wings are developed, but it is sever
al hours before the proper colors are
acquired and several days before the
Cicada is very active in fight or
song. Their song is produced by
beating two little drumbeads that are
stretched over spertures in the body.
The beating is done from within.
The females deposite their eggs near
about June 10th in the twigs of trees
but never in evergreens. The eggs
hatch in July, and the little Cicada
soon after being Matched drops gen.
tly as snowflake to the ground,
where it enters its quiet abode to
grovel in the dark earth all the years
of its long and gloomy life except
near its close, when il comes fortl,
to the light Of day and enjoys few
days of noisy, festive life.
The Cicada has no sting, yet it in
flicts a painful wound sometimes
with its beak, in the same manner as
do mosquitoes. Much injury is done
to young fruit trees in which the
eggs are laid, and there is no way to
get rid of them unless there is
strong wind to drive them.
There are many separate broods
of Cicad@ in different parts of the
country, many of them overlapping
each other so that in some places
they appear to have no regular time
to appear, as number of broods APP
pear in the same region but at differ
ent times. 1t is only with immense
labor that Prof Walsh has been able
to ascertain the location and dates of
the different broods. From his
chronological record we indicate the
location of the different broods Of
Cicadas that will appear during the
next II years:
lS71-Our present brood extends from Central
Michigan through Illinois and Wisconsin
into Iowa. There is small local brood in
Pennsylvania and - year brood in part of
Mississippi and Louisiana
1872 A 10 year brood in Southern Illinois
and part of Missouri There will also be a
great II year brood extending from Massa-
chusetts Bay into parts of West Virginia
and Ohio
lS7A-Southeaster Nebraska
| lS77-On the Hudson and extending into Con-
necticut, New Jersey and Pennsylvania.
! lS7S-Central Illinois and Eastern Missouri
| lS79-Northwestern Missouri, Eastern Kan
sas and Central Ohio.
ISS0-Ohio Valley.
| lSSl-The year has several broods, as follows:
Marquette and Green Lake Counties, Wis,
Western North Carolina, Northeast Ohio.
Lancaster County, PENNSYLVANIA, and West.
chester County, ~ Y. There will be also a
great 10 year brood of Cicadas, embracing
nearly all the Southern States as well as
Missouri and Southern Illinois.
| lSS3-Parts Of New York, Pennsylvania and
Ohio.
lSS4-Certain parts Of North Carolina and
Central Virginia.
1SS5-Thls year is entitled to a vast II year
brood, extending over parts of Vermont
Massachusetts, and New York, also extend
ing from Pennsylvania TO Georgia and
brood in Southern Michigan extending into
Ohio and Indiana.
lSS6-Conuecticut River Valley.
lSS7-York County, Pennsylvania.
Thus wo see that during the next
II years there will be Cicadas in
some part of the United States every
year except the years 1873, 1875,
1876 and 1882.
JEFF AND HoRACB.-Jeff Davis call
| Cd ON Ernclnr nt Mnrn mia nnd OF