Of all the wonders of the natural world, few are as mesmerizing and mysterious as the cicada. For weeks, perhaps even months, the earth seems to tremble with their rhythmic, deafening chorus. Day to day, then, as suddenly as it began, the noise subsides, leaving behind a landscape littered with discarded, papery shells clinging to tree trunks and fences. This leaves a universal question for anyone who witnesses the spectacle: **what does a cicada turn into?
The simple, direct answer is that a cicada turns into an adult cicada. But that answer barely scratches the surface of one of the most extraordinary metamorphoses in the insect world. The journey from a subterranean nymph to a winged, singing adult is a story of patience, transformation, and a final, fleeting burst of life dedicated to a single, vital purpose: reproduction.
The Long Wait: Life as a Nymph
To understand what a cicada becomes, we must first appreciate what it is for the vast majority of its life. Cicadas are not like butterflies, which transform from caterpillar to chrysalis to butterfly in a matter of weeks. Cicadas spend almost their entire lives in a dormant, subterranean state as nymphs.
Depending on the species, this period underground can last for years. The famous periodical cicadas of North America, known for their synchronized 13- or 17-year life cycles, are the champions of patience. Other species, known as annual or dog-day cicadas, have shorter, less synchronized cycles of 2 to 5 years. But the principle is the same.
As a nymph, the cicada is a subterranean farmer. They molt several times as they grow, shedding their exoskeleton and burrowing deeper into the soil to avoid predators and temperature extremes. This diet is low in nutrients, which is why they need to consume so much, and it explains their long development time. It crawls through the soil, using its specialized, straw-like mouthparts to tap into the roots of trees and other plants, sucking up the nutrient-rich xylem fluid. They are masters of evasion, living a quiet, hidden life for years, growing incrementally with each passing season Took long enough..
The Signal to Rise: The Final Molt
The trigger for this long-awaited transformation is not fully understood by scientists, but it is believed to be a combination of internal biological clock and external soil temperature cues. When the time is right, the nymph stops feeding and begins its final journey upward toward the surface Surprisingly effective..
This emergence is a critical and dangerous moment. Now, the nymph must find a secure spot to undergo its final molt, a process called ecdysis. So a cicada's exoskeleton does not stretch; it must split open to allow the soft, new body to emerge. This is why you see them clinging so tightly to tree bark, branches, fences, and even walls—the rough surface provides the necessary use to pull themselves free Took long enough..
The actual molting process is a slow, vulnerable ballet. It then wiggles and pushes its way out, a pale, soft, and completely helpless creature known as the teneral stage. Also, the cicada's outer skin splits along the back, starting from the head. At this moment, it is at its most defenseless, unable to fly and with wings that are crumpled and useless And that's really what it comes down to..
The Adult Cicada: A Brief and Brilliant Transformation
This is the answer to your question: what it turns into is a fully-formed adult cicada. But the transformation is far from over the moment it emerges from its shell. Over the next several hours, the adult cicada undergoes a miraculous process of expansion and hardening And it works..
- Inflation: The cicada pumps fluid from its body into its wings, inflating them to their full size. It also expands its abdomen and thorax. This process can take several hours, during which the cicada is still vulnerable and unable to move much.
- Darkening and Hardening: The soft, pale exoskeleton begins to darken and harden as the chitin in its cuticle cross-links and tans, much like leather. The cicada's body becomes rigid and strong. Its compound eyes, which were initially dull, develop their brilliant coloration.
- Drying: The wings must dry completely before the cicada can fly. This involves the insect pumping more fluid through its wings, spreading the veins, and waiting for them to become rigid and functional.
Once this process is complete, the cicada is a master of the air. It has large, clear wings, a stout body, and—most famously for the males—a pair of powerful, drum-like organs called tymbals on the sides of its abdomen But it adds up..
The Purpose of the Song and the Adult Stage
The entire reason for this immense transformation is reproduction. The adult stage is incredibly short-lived, lasting only a few weeks. The males sing to attract females. The sound is produced by rapidly contracting and relaxing muscles attached to the tymbals, creating the characteristic buzzing or clicking noise. Different species have different songs, which helps females identify a mate of their own kind Easy to understand, harder to ignore. Still holds up..
After mating, the female uses her saw-like ovipositor to make small slits in the twigs of young trees, where she lays her eggs. The eggs hatch into nymphs, which then drop to the soil and begin their own long journey underground, starting the cycle all over again It's one of those things that adds up..
Basically the bit that actually matters in practice.
Conclusion: A Cycle of Patience and Promise
So, what does a cicada turn into? In practice, it turns into a spectacular, winged adult whose sole purpose is to find a mate and ensure the survival of its species. But the true marvel is not just the final form, but the entire journey.
No fluff here — just what actually works Simple, but easy to overlook..
The cicada's life is a powerful metaphor for patience and transformation. It spends the majority of its existence hidden, working silently towards a future goal. Now, then, in a breathtakingly brief and noisy burst, it achieves its ultimate potential, fulfills its biological destiny, and leaves behind the next generation to continue the silent, subterranean work. The empty shell left on the tree is not a discarded husk; it is a monument to a life cycle that is as old as the trees themselves, a testament to the incredible resilience and wonder of the natural world.
