Cicadas

    Mating calls of male Dog Day Cicadas are used to attract female partners. Research has shown that Dog Day Cicadas, one of the most common species of cicadas found in the United States, use a specific mating call in order to attract females in hopes of performing reproduction. The sound that is created by the panels beneath their wings, known as tymbals. The panels vibrate rapidly, and is then intensified by the cicada’s mostly hollow abdomen. The main mating call is a high-pitched drone that lasts about 15 seconds. It starts softly and gradually grows louder in a crescendo, and then tapers off by the end. The sound is eerily similar to the sound of an electric saw. Yet female and male cicadas can also create sounds using their wings, but this sound is different and distinct. We would like to determine whether or not this signal is also a part of the mating call, or is instead used in a different manner. Cicadas are not known for communicating anything other than their desire to mate, and our team would like to determine what else are Dog Day Cicadas singing about. We would be able to gather data from the Texas A&M Forest Services, the studies done by the University of Wisconsin Milwaukee, and other research journals done by the University of California, Irvine.