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T. canicularis in Taunton, Ma.

Sightings Category: Cicadas

T. canicularis in Taunton, Ma.

Hello. I am VERY concerned about what I found on my front stoop this a.m. A dead cicada with its underside covered in a WHITE MOLD looking substance.....PLEASE CONTACT ME - I WILL TRY AND GET PICS UPLOADED TO YOU. I PUT IT IN A BAGGIE

Date Posted: 2011-08-20 Comments: (10) Show Comments Hide Comments

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Posted By: Massachusetts Cicadas | On: 2011-08-21 | Website:

Hi Darren,

Not to worry about the white stuff on the bottom of this cicada. It is not mold. It is actually a waxy substance and is pretty standard in all cicadas from the genus Tibicen. Your cicada is known as Tibicen canicularis. We often refer to this white stuff as the "pruinosity" of a cicada.

We've had many-a-discussion in the past with colleagues to speculate on what the pruinsosity is for with a lot of interesting theories. Some have speculated that overall patterns of pruinosity both on the underside of cicadas and on top make an overall pattern for conspecific (same-species) pair formation. Other theories also include that it acts as a barrier and protects the cicada from things like parasitic organisms or perhaps even disease.

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