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, the Tettigarctidae, with two species in Australia, and the Cicadidae, with more than 3,000 species described from around the world; many species remain undescribed. Nearly all of cicada species are annual cicadas with the exception of the few North American periodical cicada species, genus Magicicada, which in a given region emerge en masse every 13 or 17 years.
Sphecius speciosus, the eastern cicada-killer wasp, is a large, solitary digger wasp species in the family Bembicidae. They are so named because they hunt cicadas and provision their nests with them. Cicada killers exert a measure of natural control on cicada populations, and as such, they may directly benefit the deciduous trees upon which the cicadas feed. Sometimes, they are erroneously called sand hornets, despite not truly being hornets, which belong to the family Vespidae.
Cicadidae, the true cicadas, is one of two families of cicadas, containing almost all living cicada species with more than 3,200 species worldwide.
Cicadas of the genus Neotibicen are large-bodied insects of the family Cicadidae that appear in summer or early fall in eastern North America and formerly Bermuda. Common names include cicada, harvestfly, jar fly, and the misnomer locust.
Magicicada cassini, known as the 17-year cicada, Cassin's periodical cicada or the dwarf periodical cicada, is a species of periodical cicada. It is endemic to North America. It has a 17-year life cycle but is otherwise indistinguishable from the 13-year periodical cicada Magicicada tredecassini. The two species are usually discussed together as "cassini periodical cicadas" or "cassini-type periodical cicadas." Unlike other periodical cicadas, cassini-type males may synchronize their courting behavior so that tens of thousands of males sing and fly in unison. The species was first reported to the Academy of Natural Sciences of Philadelphia by Margaretta Morris in 1846. In 1852, the species was formally described by J. C. Fisher and given the specific name cassini in honour of John Cassin, an American ornithologist, whose own report was included by Fisher in his publication.
The chorus cicada, Amphipsalta zelandica, is the most common species of cicada in New Zealand, where it is endemic and found in most areas. They typically live in forests and areas with open bush, where their left-over nymph skins can be seen on tree trunks and branches during the summer months. The males produce their cicada sound in unison, which can reach deafening proportions at the height of their population around February. Groups of cicada can suddenly transition from the typical cicada sound to synchronised clicks, using their wings to clap against the surface they are sitting on.
Thopha saccata, 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 is a genus of cicadas with the only species Aleeta curvicosta, one of Australia's most familiar insects. Native to the continent's eastern coastline, it was described in 1834 by Ernst Friedrich Germar.
Cryptotympanini is a tribe of cicadas in the family Cicadidae. They are found in the Nearctic, Palearctic, Indomalaya, Oceania, and Afrotropics.
Cicada orni, colloquially called the Common cicada or Ash cicada, is a species of cicada belonging to the family Cicadidae, subfamily Cicadinae, and the genus Cicada.
Neotibicen tibicen, known generally as the swamp cicada or morning cicada, is a species of cicada in the family Cicadidae. It is widespread across much of the eastern and central United States and portions of southeastern Canada. There are two subspecies, N. tibicen tibicen and N. tibicen australis, with the latter replacing subspecies tibicen in portions of Florida, Georgia, and Alabama.
Tibicen is a former genus name in the insect family Cicadidae that was originally published by P. A. Latreille in 1825 and formally made available in a translation by A. A. Berthold in 1827. The name was placed on the Official Index of Rejected and Invalid Generic Names in Zoology by the International Commission on Zoological Nomenclature in 2021. Certain European cicada species that were included by some authors in this genus at the time of its suppression are now listed under genus Lyristes Horváth, 1926. Other formerly-Tibicen species are placed in the tribe Cryptotympanini and include the genera Auritibicen Lee, 2015, Hadoa Moulds, 2015 Megatibicen Sanborn and Heath, 2016, and Neotibicen Hill and Moulds, 2015.
The genus Hadoa comprises large-bodied Cicadidae occurring in Western North America. Until recently, these species were in the genus Tibicen, which has now been redefined so as to include only a few European species, while most species from the Eastern and Central US are now placed in Neotibicen and Megatibicen.
Megatibicen dorsatus, known generally as the bush cicada or giant grassland cicada, is a species of cicada in the family Cicadidae.
Megatibicen is a genus of cicadas in the family Cicadidae, with about 10 described species. Until 2016, these species were included in the genus Tibicen and then briefly in Neotibicen. The species formerly of genera Ameritibicen Lee, 2016 and Gigatibicen Lee, 2016 are now considered species of Megatibicen Sanborn & Heath, 2016.
Neotibicen pruinosus, commonly known as the scissor grinder, is a species of cicada in the family Cicadidae.
Neotibicen superbus, the superb dog-day cicada, is a species of cicada in the family Cicadidae. It is the greenest cicada in the neotibicen genus. It has reduced black patterning and looks different than most other cicadas in its genus. Its song is a soft buzz that reaches a crescendo.
Cornuplura is a genus of cicadas in the family Cicadidae. There are at least three described species in Cornuplura.
Megatibicen resh, the resh cicada or western dusk singing cicada, is a species of cicada in the family Cicadidae, found in North America.
Lyristes is a genus of cicadas from Europe and the Middle East. It was described by G. Horvath in 1926.
