I'm told this bug is a cicada. He's casting the most delicate shadow, even the tiny claws on his feet. I was convinced he was dead, then a child I was with poked him with her finger - he moved! ... hehehehe.
The creamy green veined, gauzy wings look impossibly fragile for his bulk.
The mantle around his neck reminds me of a dinosaur, it looks like it's there as a defensive mechanism, his eyes are placed at each side of his head, with a distracting decoy in the centre.
He’s lovely as long as he doesn’t land on me!
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11 comments:
That's beautiful!
Come and See my Shadow Shots.
It is a beautiful bug, love it's wings! So delicate! And like you, I can really appreciate him as long as he stays off of me!! Fun shadow shot for the day! Enjoy your weekend!
Sylvia
That is cute and interesting...Happy SSS!
Some people don't like the song of the cicada, but I happen to find it comforting and mysterious. Thanks for the close-up!
A SEEKER OF SHADOWS
A seeker of shadows one day
Asked shadows to come out and play:
“O shadows, my dears,
Despite all my fears,
I hope you will not run away.”
© 2011 by Magical Mystical Teacher
Shadowy Humility
I've never seen a live cicada but I have a couple of exoskeletons that I found outside last summer. I put them in a couple of cactus pots and I see them every time I water. I love looking at them. But I love the green color of this live one even more. and the veins in the wings. this is a fabulous photo. have you heard their song? it can get very loud but I never tire of it; I hear it a lot towards late summer. it always reminds me of my childhood and the very first time I ever heard it - my family was visiting relatives "down south". meaning the southern tip of Illinois, not that far south actually! thanks for the memory. have a beautiful week Sue, and happy SSS!
Super shot!! At the moment we are getting a few Locusts, not nearly as nice.
I've never seen one - beautiful shot! And great shadows!
I've never been that close to one of those creatures but I hear them singing up a storm around my house every day. It's actually a very pleasant sound. Almost like a soundtrack to summer! Great photos! Enjoy the rest of your weekend Sue :)
Very nice macro! I wonder what that look in his eyes means. :)
Great macro (and shadow). Definitely a cicada (Latin for "buzzer" appropriately enough). Through I know nothing about Australian species, it's probably a Australian "Green Grocer" Cicada (Cyclochila australasiae). If so, it's acknowledged as one of the loudest insects in the world.
Cicadas don't normally bite or sting, though if you were to hold it for a while (which sounds highly unlikely), it might think you were a tree and insert its proboscis into your skin to dine upon your sap.
In many parts of the world, cicadas are considered a culinary treat.
thankyou everyone for visiting and commenting. Marvin, I think you might be right about the type, as they are incredibly loud. On a hot evening (which have been sadly scarce this summer) it can be a battle to make conversation above the din. It can almost become painful. It's amazing that they could mistake an arm for dinner! We've seen them roasted on little sticks in Asia though I haven't been tempted to try them (they are a smaller variety.)
EGW as to the look in his eyes, I hope it wasn't anything to do with thinking I was his dinner!
HeyHarriet: definitely the soundtrack to summer!
Beverley I wish I'd taken a shot with something in there in to give a sense of scale. He's huge (for a bug) as long as my pointer finger, but fatter (good to barbeque!)
Just joking ;)
Angie: locusts aren't nice at all. They've been a real problem this year.
Becky, if he'd been dead, I would have brought his shell home too , I suspect they change colour depending on the season, I always thought they were brownish/black.
Sylvia, one day I must tell the story of the huntsman running up my bare leg.
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