That being said, I'm sure you're not surprised that I'm a little excited about all of the cicadas that are erupting in Middle Tennessee at this very moment.
Cicadas are pretty cool little creatures. The females lay eggs under the bark of a tree. The eggs hatch and the newborn nymphs burrow into the ground where they hang out for 13 years (17 in some cases)! Then, they tunnel out of the ground, shed their exoskeleton, and emerge as adults to start the cycle all over again.
Can you imagine taking a 13 year nap? Sounds fantastic to me. Just think of all of the things that have happened in the last 13 years. For starters, in 1998, Bill Clinton was president and our country had a budget surplus. Personally, off the top of my head in the last 13 years I graduated high school, graduated college, got married, got a PhD, had a baby, moved to Nashville, started carrying a purse etc, etc.
But, back to the cicadas. I took these pictures at work yesterday.
All Grown Up
Discarded Exoskeletons
Cool, aren't they. And, I hear they're good eats...
6 comments:
Is this some kind of science fetish post? I love it! So... I will "feed" the fascination.
food ideas
and the link (just in case)...
http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2007/05/070522-cicadas-eat_2.html
I loved it when the 17-year cicadas were in Cincinnati in 2004! Our whole back yard was a black swarm. It was crazy. My kids were 3, 4, & 8 years old and they could practically pick them right out of the air. It was fun. Enjoy! What does Harper think of them?
We had a blast with them in 2004 also. Even Rebecca who is now creeped out by bugs. When they were out in 1987 the BBC came and shot some video in my parents backyard. Apparently they had the most per square foot of any place in Western Hills. How they knew that I have no idea.
Rob- You're weird.
Fran - Harper hasn't seen them yet. We don't have any around the house yet and I haven't seen any at her school either. I'm guessing she'll be interested for about 5 seconds and then she'll be on to something else, like tutus or maybe princesses...
Last year when the cicadas would chirp or whatever they do, Eliana would get big eyes and say,"What's that?" very seriously. I would tell her what they were. When she tried to tell me what they were the next time she heard them it would always come out "Sackuhpotatoes." So funny. They kind of freak her out. :)
You can also collect their exoskeletons and brew a tea with them that supposedly cures the common cold. Not that I would try it. But yeah. It's an Asian remedy.
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