Red Mosquito

96583UP wrote:i am concerned about this from what i have read

hopefully it doesn't also coincide with a drought or something that makes food supply much worse

96583UP wrote:why the separation of the thread title into two words

B wrote:

Sucks to be Spike.

What is a ‘zombie’ cicada?

Some, but far from all, of the cicadas emerging this year will be so-called “zombie” cicadas. These insects have been infected by a sexually transmitted fungus that makes them hyper-sexual.

Once spores of the fungus come into contact with the cicadas, the insects’ bodies are hijacked by the fungal parasite. A large mass of fungal spores builds up in the abdomen of infected cicadas causing the back end of the animals, including its genitals, to fall off. Despite this, the infected cicadas still attempt to mate in a frenzied way, as a way to spread the fungus, often with disastrous results for would-be partners.

“Periodical cicadas have interlocking genitalia. So when they pull apart, guess what happens? Rip. And then there’s a cicada walking around with someone else’s genitals stuck to them,” said John Cooley, a cicada expert at the University of Connecticut.

E.H. Ruddock wrote:Just saw a story on the news that people are calling police to complain about cicada noise. JFC. Hurry comet.