New YorK AGRICULTURAL EXPERIMENT STATION. 235 
The interesting habits of the cicadas, their appearance in 
great swarms, and the noisy way in which they proclaim their 
presence, early attracted attention. The species is a native of 
America, and probably the first known record of its appear- 
ance is found in Moreton’s New England Memorial in which it 
is stated that a swarm appeared in Plymouth in the spring of 
1633}, 
The periodical cieada was originally described by Linné, who 
gave it the scientific name Cicada septendecim, publishing the 
description? in 1758. It has been suggested’ that the popular 
but incorrest name “ seventeen-year locust ” probably originated 
with the early settlers who associated the swarms of cicadas 
with the devastating hordes of migratory locusts. 
The unusual interest attached to this species has also re- 
sulted in its being made the subject of investigation from the 
time of the earliest entomologists until the present day. The 
difficulty of following a number of individuals through their 
long life underground, however, prevented a thorough knowl- 
edge of the insect’s subterranean life until the comparatively 
recent investigations of the late Dr. C. V. Riley and those of 
C. L. Marlatt, which resulted in throwing much light on its 
entire life history. 
LIFE HISTORY. 
The life history of the periodical cicada does not differ mate- 
rially from that of many other species of insects except for the 
long life under the ground. There are many others that are 
known to live nearly a year in the soil, and a few, such as the 
common white grub, the larva of the May beetle, are about 
three years in the ground before emerging; but no other insect 
known can equal the periodical cicada for longevity. 
The egg.— The eggs are laid in the twigs and smaller branches 
of deciduous trees. They are placed well in the wood in double 
rows as described on a subsequent page. The egg is at first 
pearly white in color, but, as the shell is very thin and semi- 
transparent, turns darker, probably because of the color of the 
1Harris. Insects Injurious to Vegetation. Second Edition, p. 180. 
2Systema Naturae (tenth edition). 
3Hopkins,; A.D. W. Va. Agr. Exp. Sta. Bul. 50, p. 5. 
4U.S. Dept. Agr., Div. of Ent., Bul. 14, n.s. 
