What Good Are Cicadas?
Comments (0) Go to the ant, you sluggard; consider its ways and be wise!
It has no commander, no overseer or ruler,
yet it stores its provisions in summer
and gathers its food at harvest.
Proverbs 6:6-8 (NIV)
View a large print PDF version here
Download Adobe PDF reader here
These “bugs” or flying insects are native to eastern Canada and the United States as well as other countries worldwide. Estimates vary concerning how many species of cicadas there are worldwide but it ranges from 1,500 to 2,500. The best known is the 17 year cicada. The last stage in the life of this 17 year cicada comes after 17 years of “hibernation”.
In my country, no hot sticky summer’s day would be complete without the familiar buzzing sound of this creature. So, their “song” fills the summer air in my area of the world just as their earlier cycle of development as nymphs many fill the stomachs of fish and small animals.
Cicadas, as do all forms of life, show remarkable engineering in the way their bodies are constructed. Also, like so many creatures, they have a highly developed computer like brain that is programmed to guide them through their life cycles.
Continue reading 'What Good Are Cicadas?'»
@GordonRumford