Taxonomy
Kingdom: Animalia
Phylum: Arthropoda
Family: Auchenorrhyncha
Class: Uniramia (Insecta) - the true insects
Order: Homoptera
Suborder: Auchenorrhyncha
Infraorder: Cicadomorph
Superfamily: Cicadoidea
Family: Cicadidae
Species: Magicicada
To learn more about classification
.
Here's the basic cicada life cycle: Hatch from eggs laid in tree branches;
drop to the ground, burrow about a foot deep; hang out for 17 (or 13) years;
climb back to the surface; fly around, make a lot of noise, mate and die.
Rinse, repeat, ad infinitum.
General Information
Phylum-Arthropoda: Any member of the phylum Arthropoda,
the largest in the animal kingdom, which includes such familiar forms as lobsters,
crabs, spiders, insects, centipedes, and millipedes.
About 84 percent of the known species of animals are
members of this phylum, and they are very diverse in structure, in lifestyles,
and in types of habitat.
Cicadas come in several species; the most conspicuous
of which are members of the Magicicada genus, also known as "periodical" cicadas.
Periodical cicadas are also commonly called the 17-year cicada, 13-year cicada,
or locusts. The name "locust" is misleading because it applies to migratory
grasshoppers. These insects live for 17 years (or in some species, 13 years),
but only make one single, group appearance during their lifetime.
Additional Resources
Below you will find links to other sites on the Internet that contain a
plethora of information about cicadas.
The
University of Michigan Zoology Department
has a very comprehensive site that contains photos, classifications and calling
sounds of various classes of cicadas.
Their Periodical
Cicada Page is also quite good.
Penn
State University College of Agricultural Sciences
National
Geographic News Report
Wikpedia
Contains very detailed information.