New cicada just dropped! скачать в хорошем качестве

New cicada just dropped!

This new-to-science cicada is special for so many reasons, but to name a few: 1. It’s entirely black-and-white. 2. It calls at a much lower frequency than most other species in its genus do relative to their body sizes — in other words, it's super distinct. 3. It’s (so far) only found in one tiny patch of California — the Cedars in Sonoma County. Botanist Roger Raiche first photographed the cicada — Okanagana monochroma — in 1982 and, along with naturalist Dave Barry, shared photos to ‪@inaturalist-org‬ in 2016 that initiated a formal species documentation process. In May 2025, researchers Elliott Smeds (of ‪@calacademy‬) and Will Chatfield-Taylor published their paper describing this unique insect. Unlike 17-year periodical cicadas, Okanagana monochroma has a 4-5 year life cycle. Different broods emerge annually from April to July, laying their eggs in azalea plants that are unique to the serpentine habitats where they're found. We still have much to learn about biodiversity, even in well-studied places like California — and the more we understand about local nature, the better we can protect it.