American Cicada or Locust. 



that the depth of a common furrow in ploughing, turned them out in 

 their chrysaloid state. By the 24th, they had begun to arise from 

 the earth, burst their transparent covering and expand their wings. 

 From this time to the 10th of June, their numbers daily increased, 

 until woodlands and orchards were filled with countless multitudes. 

 A continual singing or scream was kept up by the males, from sun- 

 rise till evening, and so loud that in a calm morning the sound was 

 heard a full mile. For this purpose the male is furnished with an air 

 bladder under the axillae, of a pale blue color, as represented in the 

 figure ; the females make no noise. They appeared onl}^ in situations 

 which were covered with trees, as was the fact when they were here in 

 1812 ; thereby proving that they had not wandered far in their jour- 

 ney of seventeen years. The earth was perforated like a riddle, with 

 holes about a third of an inch in diameter. In an orchard in this 

 town, I counted twenty-five holes on a foot square, and an intelli- 

 gent acquaintance told me that in his neighborhood, he had seen 

 more than double that number in the same space. Where trees 

 were not near each other, the ground underneath them was covered 

 with their skins or cast off robes, to the depth of two or three inches. 

 These shells retain the exact figure of the insect when it leaves the 

 earth, with a rent on the back, through which the cicada creeps as 

 from a coat of mail — and are firmly fastened by the feet to the bark 

 and twigs of trees and bushes, until they are thrown down by the 

 winds or rain. Instinct leading them to seek the nearest tree, bush 

 or post, as soon as they leave the earth ; here they remain until they 

 have left their shells for some hours, or until their wings are dry and 

 sufficiently strong for flying. There appeared to be two varieties of 

 the cicada, one much smaller than the other : there was also a strik- 

 ing difterence in their notes. The smaller variety were more com- 

 mon in the bottom lands, and the larger in the hills. A continual 

 scream was kept up by the males during the day, but they were si- 

 lent through the night. Their flight was short, seldom exceeding 

 eight or ten rods, and their whole lives appeared to be spent near the 

 place of their nativity. I could not discover that they made use of 

 any food ; they certainly eat no leaves of trees or plants, as they are 

 not furnished with jaws or teeth. They have a hard and sharp pro- 

 boscis, about two lines in length, which is generally compressed 

 closely to the thorax : this I have seen inserted in the smooth bark of 

 young trees, and when driven from the spot, a drop of juice issued 

 from the puncture: they would also, when disturbed, throw out a 



