The 3D adventures of Betsy the Cicada nymph… After she had been climbing up the infinite surrogate paper towel tree for over 35min, I began to wonder what would cue her to stop. Did she need an overhanging angle? A better grip? A darker spot where she could not see moonlight ( = bathroom light)?
I brought in this green foam roller, thinking it might afford her a better grip. But as soon as she moved onto it, she froze. Oh no, did she not like the foam surface? Were her claws stuck in it, unable to climb more?? Or was she exhausted, and maybe taking a break before continuing? I feared she had used up all her energy climbing so far, and was too weak to break out of her shell, and would just die right there without molting! 😰
After a few minutes, I thought I’d better transfer her back to the paper towel. I tried to gently lift her legs from the roller, but no dice—she was gripping on VERY firmly. Hmmm…
After another minute, I looked closely, and—was that a faint line down the center that hadn’t been there before? And: ohh! Yes, look, a split! Look at this little crack with green peeking through! It’s happening! (to be continued…)
TAGS: insects > cicadas > Betsy the Cicada, cicada ecdysis, cicada nymphs, Neotibicen; ecdysis
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