The cicadas are a superfamily, the Cicadoidea, of insects in the order Hemiptera. They are in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha, along with smaller jumping bugs such as leafhoppers and froghoppers. The superfamily is divided into two families, Tettigarctidae, with two species in Australia, and Cicadidae, with more than 3,000 species described from around the world; many species remain undescribed.
The Pentatomoidea are a superfamily of insects in the Heteroptera suborder of the Hemiptera order. As Hemiptera, they share a common arrangement of sucking mouthparts. The roughly 7000 species under Pentatomoidea are divided into 21 families. Among these are the shield bugs, giant shield bugs, burrower bugs, and stink bugs.
A leafhopper is the common name for any species from the family Cicadellidae. These minute insects, colloquially known as hoppers, are plant feeders that suck plant sap from grass, shrubs, or trees. Their hind legs are modified for jumping, and are covered with hairs that facilitate the spreading of a secretion over their bodies that acts as a water repellent and carrier of pheromones. They undergo a partial metamorphosis, and have various host associations, varying from very generalized to very specific. Some species have a cosmopolitan distribution, or occur throughout the temperate and tropical regions. Some are pests or vectors of plant viruses and phytoplasmas. The family is distributed all over the world, and constitutes the second-largest hemipteran family, with at least 20,000 described species.
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.
Thopha saccata, commonly known as the double drummer, is the largest Australian species of cicada and reputedly the loudest insect in the world. Documented by the Danish zoologist Johan Christian Fabricius in 1803, it was the first described and named cicada native to Australia. Its common name comes from the large dark red-brown sac-like pockets that the adult male has on each side of its abdomen—the "double drums"—that are used to amplify the sound it produces.
Aleeta curvicosta is a species of cicada, one of Australia's most familiar insects. Native to the continent's eastern coastline, it was described in 1834 by Ernst Friedrich Germar. The floury baker is the only described species in the genus Aleeta.
Psaltoda plaga is a species of cicada native to eastern Australia, from Maryborough in central Queensland to Bega in southern New South Wales. Adult cicadas appear over the summer and inhabit forested areas near bodies of water. The predominantly black form from the Sydney and Central Coast regions is commonly known as the black prince, while the term silver knight is used for the species as a whole.
Abricta is a genus of cicada found in Réunion, Mauritius, northeastern India, the Moluccas, New Caledonia and eastern Australia. They make a distinctive hissing sound when calling. Adult members of the genus usually face downwards on tree branches, and lay their eggs in living tissue. The genus was originally described by Carl Stål. The type species is Abricta brunnea from Mauritius and Reunion. However, recent review of the genus has shown it to be a disparate group of species, and the Australian members moved to other genera. S.M. Moulds conducted a morphological analysis of the genus and found the cicadas split naturally into clades according to biogeographical region. Of the 15 Australian species, the floury baker was the earliest offshoot. Unpublished data confirmed it was quite genetically distant from the other 14 species and so it was classified in a new monotypic genus Aleeta, while the others were placed in the genus Tryella.
Psaltoda is a genus of cicada found in eastern Australia. Originally described by Carl Stål, the type species is Psaltoda moerens known as the redeye, and P. plaga is a well-known species from eastern Australia, known as the black prince. Fifteen species are recognised. Relationships of the species with each other remains unclear.
Tacua speciosa is a very large Southeast Asian species of cicada. It is the only member of its genus.
Arunta perulata is a large cicada native to Australia. It is also known as the white drummer cicada. The name floury baker was previously applied to this species, but that name is now specific to Aleeta curvicosta.
Thopha sessiliba, commonly known as the northern double drummer, is an Australian cicada native to Queensland, the Northern Territory and northern Western Australia. Adults perch almost exclusively on ghost gums.
Macrotristria angularis, commonly known as the cherrynose, is an Australian cicada native to eastern Australia, where it is found in sclerophyll forests.
Macrotristria is a genus of cicada in the cryptotympanini tribe of the Cicadinae subfamily. Twenty five species are listed in the Atlas of Living Australia.
Maxwell Sydney Moulds is an Australian entomologist. The majority of his books are written about Cicadas. Maxwell Sydney Moulds led a morphological analysis of the genus and discovered the cicadas separation naturally into clades according to biogeographical area.
Tryella graminea, known as the Grass Buzzing Bullet, is a species of the genus Tryella. It has rounded thorax and short, hard wings. Forewing length is 20 to 27 mm. Tryella graminea inhabits in Australia.
Diceroprocta is a genus of scrub cicadas in the family Cicadidae. There are at least 60 described species in Diceroprocta.
Cicadettinae is a subfamily of cicadas in the family Cicadidae. About 230 genera and 1,200 described species are placed in the Cicadettinae.
Dundubia vaginata is the type species in its genus, sometimes called the jade-green cicada in the tribe Dundubiini.
