Cicada Journals and Archives - August 2 to August 10, 2005
08/02/05 - New Morphologies in Tibicen canicularis Cicadas page added.
I created a new page with the 4 male specimens of Tibicen canicularis that I have. Like in Tibicen lyricen Cicadas, no two T. canicularis morphologies seem to be exactly alike. You'll have to scroll down to the males section as so far I have not documented any females save for one but she only lived for a day so her true colors were never apparent.
08/04/05 - How to Hunt and Catch Cicadas
Ok, I have been monitoring my server logs and also responding to emails. Mostly it's been "When are you going to show us how to hunt and catch cicadas?" Well, look no further. I spent the last several days putting the page together which has been underconstruction for well over a year now. So your inquiries and search queries have finally been answered.
Want to know the methods that I use in order to hunt and catch cicadas? Look no further. Click here.
8/04/05 - Professor Chuck Holliday in the News
Just wanted to drop this note to let you all know that Professor Chuck Holliday who I have been communicating with in regards to Cicada Killers is in the news. Apparently there's a huge Cicada Killer colony in Kentucky and the Professor was invited out to study them. You can read the article by clicking here.
08/08/05 - People Will Do Anything for a Buck
Just when I thought I've seen it all. Something else comes along that makes me stop and wonder. What am I writing about? Well, read on.
I was on one of my favorite web sites, Cicadamania last night and I noticed this link to someone who is selling a dead Cicada on ebay. What's so special about this Cicada? Well, this one has the McDonald's Arches on it's head!
Ebay Auction Title: Cicada Insect with McDonalds Type
Golden Arches On Head
Mother Nature Endorses McDonalds Logo-Great Collectible
First of all, get a clue. The mark IS NOT on its head but rather on the mesonotum which is part of the thorax and not the head. Now if the mark was on it's head, that would be a wonder. Anyone with half a brain can see this mark IS NOT on its head!
To quote some of the item's description:
INCREDIBLE DISPLAY OF MOTHER NATURE ENDORSED ADVERTISING FOR AN AMERICAN ICON........
THE GOLDEN ARCHES OF McDONALDS!!!!
THIS WOULD BE IDEAL FOR:
<--Snip-->
ANY "CRAZY" ENTOMOLOGIST
<--Snip-->
OR
<--Snip-->
IF A "GRILLED CHEESE" IS WORTH $28,000.00... WHAT IS THIS MARVEL OF MOTHER NATURE WORTH?
LET THIS CREATURE FULFILL IT'S DESTINY AND NOT HAVE DIED IN VAIN.....
BID, BUY AND THEN PROUDLY DISPLAY HIM/HER SOMEWHERE!!!!!
Let's break this down shall we?
Mother Nature Endorsed Advertising for an American Icon - Give me a break. Cicadas have been around for thousands of years and the pattern you mention as a "Marvel of Mother Nature" has been seen on cicadas way before McDonalds was even a concept.
If a "Grilled Cheese" is worth $28,000.00... What is this Marvel of Mother Nature Worth? - Ah, but then that's it isn't it? Someone "supposedly" sold a $28,000.00 grilled cheese sandwich because of a "perceived" image of some figure imprinted on it.
The seller obviously remembered this and it caused their eyes to roll back in their head and their pupils were replaced with dollar signs, $$. One in each pupil while at the same time they probably heard a loud "cha-ching!" sound just like on the Saturday morning cartoons.
This is a perfect example of an uneducated seller which I find rampant on Ebay. Lets scrounge around and see what we can find, pull a price out of our hat then put it up on Ebay to see what it will go for. It doesn't matter that we don't do any research on what we are selling, this is unique it's got to be worth thousands!!! Oooohhh but we better put a reserve on it even though it didn't cost us anything. After all, we don't want to accidentally rip ourselves off in case we start the bidding too low. Heavens NO!!
If the seller did their homework then they would have found that this pattern which the seller calls "A Marvel of Mother Nature" is indicatative of many species of Cicadas and is nothing more than a mark. It is less prominent on some and more prominent on others. It is by no means rare or worth any amount of money.
I mention the "McDonalds Arches" in my Morphologies in Tibicen Cicadas section right on this web site. I use it as part of the Key to describe Tibicen lyricen and Tibicen canicularis cicadas. I can't help wondering if this person was looking for information on Cicadas and found this very page. If I am in some way remotely responsible I truly apologize to the readers of this web site. I have been calling this pattern "McDonalds Arches" for years.
This Would be Ideal for: Any "Crazy" Entomologist - You got that right. The Entomologist would have to be crazy to purchase this. If an Entomologist did buy this, then his degree wouldn't be worth the paper it was printed on and I personally would be afraid to call him one. No educated Entomologist in their right mind would even dare purchase this cicada. He'd be a laughing stock in any Entomological community.
Let This Creature Fulfill It's Destiny and not have died in vain..... - What destiny? Its an insect for heaven's sake! It looks like a Tibicen lyricen in case anyone is interested.
The powers that be said to this insect:
"YOU SHALL HAVE A DESTINY YOUNG CICADA!! I WANT TO PUT THE MCDONALDS ARCHES ON YOU SO THAT YOU WILL ALLOW HUMAN BEINGS WHO DESTROY YOUR HABITAT AND LAYS WASTE TO YOUR TREES AND FORESTS SO THEY MAY GET RICH OFF OF YOU!! THAT IS YOUR DESTINY!!"
I don't think so! All right, granted it's almost completely black and probably a subspecies but completely black Tibicen lyricens though rare can be found!
Bid, Buy and Then Proudly Display Him/Her Somewhere!!!!! - Yes! Lets assign a dollar value to something we found for free! Its all about money! Lets see how gullible people can be. They'll buy anything!
With a starting bid of $99.95 WITH a Reserve no less!! "A fool and his money are soon parted". Remember that quote? This person is obviously hoping for some schlep to say "Ooh Wow!! I've got to have that!" and bid on it.
If you bid on this, especially for a mark that is common in ALL Cicadas, I got some land in Iraq I can sell you, Cheap!!
Let's Get Personal for a Sec...
Shame on Ebay for this. Ebay is the whole crux of this situation. Its my personal opinion that Ebay is the Wal-Mart of the internet and has caused the collectibles market to be on steady decline since its inception. Not to mention knocking out the little guy who wants to start a business online but suddenly realizes he can't compete unless he opens an "Ebay Store" so that they (Ebay) can raise it's fees and get their cut of the sale. If you don't sell on Ebay, then you won't make it.
Not to mention the "flea market" mentality of most ebay shoppers. I say most because some truly are not.
Yeah, I admit it. I hate Ebay. Not from a buyer's standpoint but from a seller's standpoint. Trust me I have vast experience in selling on Ebay. Besides, I'm not the only one that hates Ebay. Doing a google search on "I hate Ebay" yielded 1, 440,000 results.
Just like Wal-Mart that forces little mom and pop shops to close up shop after years of being in business just because Wal-Mart has moved into their town. Read other stories from others who hate Wal-Mart.
Ebay seems to let anyone sell anything without a thought to moral or ethical considerations. Especially in regards to the Grilled Cheese sandwich that supposedly went for 28 grand. They don't care do they? After all they got their cut right? That's IF the buyer went ahead with the purchase. So why not a $99.95 Cicada with a common mark on it? Someone will buy it right? Then Ebay and the seller can laugh and sing and hold hands all the way to the bank.
What Yours Truly Did...
So naturally, I had to email the seller and set them straight. This auction is clearly all about money and the lust for it no matter by what means are employed to get it. After all with a starting bid of $99.95 and a reserve, this person OBVIOUSLY thinks this is rare right? Why not start the auction at a penny? It didn't cost them anything to obtain. Just maybe a little leg work. Maybe got up off the couch and went outside to get some exercise.
While I do forget EXACTLY what I said in my opening email to the seller, I do remember saying that this mark is quite common and that it is not rare at all. I even sent them a link to my Morphologies in Tibicen Cicadas page as proof. Below is the response I received:
Notice I never said rare. I said a marvel of mother nature and also said it would be a fun conversation/collectible. I have two charities, along with myself as well, that hope in this world someone wants to have as much fun as the "crazy" $28,000 grilled cheeses people did.
Yeah, you're right you never said rare. But with a $99.95 starting bid and a reserve no less, to me implies its rarity. Oh, you're selling this for two Charities including yourself? Huh, I don't see any mention of charities in the auction listing. If you are selling this for charity why not mention it in your auction listing?
I do see you like to mention that 28 grand final selling price of that stupid grilled cheese sandwich. This only proves my point of what you're truly about. It doesn't matter that I sent you proof that this is not a "Marvel of Mother Nature" as you so state. Nope what truly matters is lets try to sell it anyway! After all a Grilled Cheese sandwich costs more than an insect. Hopefully you'll only get 20 grand. I surely hope that you are not hoping for that kind of return on your measly investment. Good Luck.
To Those Looking for Cicada Information
I have to apologize to you for this latest posting. I'm usually not like this really. I'm a nice guy. But man this auction really "stuck a bee in my bonnet" for what it's worth. I guess I get tired of people sometimes. That's why I like insects and other animals. They have no ulterior motives, no drive for greed or taking advantage of peoples ignorance. Their only goal is to survive and live out their lives and of course to perpetuate their species. Not "Screw Thy Neighbor".
By the way
I dig Cicadamania, I go there almost every day as Dan has the most information on Cicadas anywhere else on the internet and my tirade should not be construed as an attack on his web site. He was only reporting this piece of interesting information and its not his fault as to how I reacted from it. So please go to Cicadamania for more cool information on Cicadas.
I promise that very soon I will have lots more information on Cicadas. As a matter of fact, a friend of mine from New Zealand sent me a ton of Cicadas from his country and I'm dying to spend time and study them. I will be posting pics and information on them soon. Not to mention, I'll be going out to hunt for more cicadas and I will post my adventures. In addition, I'm currently working on the details for a trip to Connecticut to meet up with another Cicada enthusiast who will show me his stomping grounds and where he goes to hunt for Cicadas so stay posted.
Gerry
08/09/05 - Help Report Cicada Killers in New England
Hi There. Remember a few weeks back when I said that I will be uploading a new page to help Professor Chuck Holliday with his Cicada Killer distribution map? Well, as promised the page has been uploaded. If you live in New England and you spot Cicada Killers wasps please go here and help us out. It would be greatly appreciated. Click here for the details.
08/10/05 - I'm Not Crazy T. chloromera Heard In My Very Own Back Yard!!
Hey all, at first I thought that maybe I was crazy, just hearing things. This site is only supposed to be about the two species of Tibicen cicadas known to be in Massachusetts Tibicen lyricen and Tibicen canicularis. Now though, there may be a third!
Yesterday I was outside with my fiance and both of us heard the call of a male Tibicen chloromera. I know what this seems like but I swear to you we heard it. It was so unusual for my fiance that she thought that maybe it was a child's toy. I said "No way man, that's Tibicen chloromera." Unfortunately we only heard it the one time.
According to John Zyla who runs Cicadas.info Tibicen chloromera's most northern range is South Western Connecticut. I can tell you that I'm at least a hundred miles north of there. In fact I'm located in North Chelmsford Massachusetts which is just 5 miles from the Southern New Hampshire border. Nashua New Hampshire to be exact.
Anyway fast-forward to today. I'm sitting here in my home office and I heard it again at 9:42 am. I decided that I was going to go out and search for sounds of T. chloromera at my favorite cicada hunting spots but I heard nothing so I came back home. Sure enough while up in my office again, I heard it again, then again and then again!! I ran outside with my digital camera which also records sounds and I managed to catch it on digital recording.
Unfortunately, the recording isn't clear because the little Chinese man next door to me was mowing his lawn. But the first five seconds of the sound clip you can just make out the calling song of the male T. chloromera. But first before you hear it, here is a link to Cicada central's web site. Click on the calling song for T. chloromera:
Cicada Central's Version:
Click here
Now compare that to my recording, try to hear behind the lawnmower noise in the first 5 seconds. You may have to turn the volume up on your speakers.
My Recording:
Click here.
I will definately try to get a better recording hopefully in the very near future. Lets hope he stays in my neighborhood.
John Zyla of Cicadas.info thinks that this may be a satellite male that flew up from the South to explore new ground. I surely hope the male finds a female T. chloromera to mate with.
This is truly something. I'm truly excited that we may have this species here. If you haven't read the essay I wrote entitled "My First Cicada: An Essay" it's about the discovery of my first cicada ever. A male Tibicen chloromera cicada that I found when I was just 10 years old and sparked my interest in cicadas.
Hearing that sound brought back a flood of memories of hearing T. chloromera while living in Baltimore, calling when I first woke up in the morning and brought back memories of hearing this cicada and running through the house trying to get ready in time to go and catch it.
