Noli the Entomologist was armed with her trusty butterfly net, looking up to see the butterflies flying about. Then something kinda icky and creepy catches her eye .... and it's making a funny chirping sound. We look, and there is a katy bug! (Katy bug, aka cicada in big people talk.)
A little background -- when Noli's Uncle Adam (my son) was a little boy, he called cicadas "katy bugs" and the name stuck. It is, after all, a very scientific term, you know.
So we snuck up on the katy bug, Noli armed with her butterfly net, and me with my trusty camera.
Girl vs Bug
Dare ya to touch it!! I double dog dare ya!
We looked closely and could see how transparent their wings are, and how iridescent their bodies.
(Click on this pic for a real up-close-and-personal look!!)
We found a shell clinging to the lawn mower and talked about how they live underground for as long as 17 years, and then climb out to the surface, find a twig or leaf (or in this case, a lawn mower) to attach to, and then leave their shell as adults.
"How do they know when to come up from underground?" asks Entomologist Noli.
"I guess they have an alarm clock!" jokes smarty pants grandma.
Then we went to learn a bit more about katy bugs from the trusty internet.
("They are really called cicadas, you know" says Noli -- she never lets me get away with anything ...)
One thing we learned is that katy bugs are eaten in some countries -- do you want yours grilled or fried?
♥♥♥ Linking Entomologist Noli and her katy bugs to Alphabe-Thursday at Miss Jenny's classroom, where we are studying the letter E!!
♥♥
17 comments:
yeech!
Your cicadas are much prettier than our cicadas. (if such a thing is possible)
a very fun post!
Noli is such a cutie!
Wow...great close up! Love the name you gave them :) We always referred to them as locust and had a tree out front where they would always leave their shells.
I had no idea they lived that long...or under ground!
How cool! I didn't know they lived for that long underground. What a great thing for a little one to do!
What fabulous insects they are!! I love to hear that sound in the evening!!
When Cynthia was little, she and her friends used to collect the shells - they called them Ghost Bugs.
Those are some crazy bugs!!
I have heard of these, but never saw one up close. I think I'm good now : )
Dana
ugh! eaten?! I think I'll pass on that! Noli learns so much at your house - sounds like a fun afternoon. Entmologist - perfect for this AlphabeThursday! {:-D
Awesome idea for your E post! Your pictures of Noli are great as always, and you got some beautiful close up captures of the bugs.
Gross. I grew up with those suckers and was fascinated how they lived underground for so long. We don't have nearly the amount here that I saw as a child but the first time I saw a shell I made sure to point it out to the kids. It was like revisiting my childhood.
Oh! Thanks for taking me back to my childhood. I loved looking for 'locusts' as we called them. I especially loved finding their empty shells. What a fun E post!
The shells are so creepy. We find them here too.
We saw some neat cicadas when we visited Bali a couple of years ago. They were so loud! I don't think we have them around here, or I'm sure my kids would be hunting them. They catch everything else. We actually did catch a butterfly the other day, but we kind of cheated - it was trapped in the house and had landed on the window. We caught it and took it back outside.
Hello.
Urgh! Bugs and me were never such close friends. Fun photos though. Thanks for sharing.
Emotions Of Poetry
I grew up with those in Kansas but we called them locusts. I haven't heard the term katy bug before and only heard of cicada many years laters. They are fascinating creatures and one bug that I actually held without freaking out!
I always thought my son would be an entomologist!
I hope your sweet daughter becomes one...that would be a cool thing to tell people!
Thanks for an excellent and entertaining link for the letter "E".
A+
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