Have you ever SEEN a cicada in a tree singing? I've heard them all my life, and they really were

[raccoon]

going earlier today.

I've seen their shedded shells, and seen the animals, deceased or maybe still living, on the pavement or ground (not often).

I can stand right under a tree and hear them. I guess they are under the leaves and that's why you can't see them....

[tk2kewl]

1. when i was a kid my cats would play hockey with them on the pavement

the cicadas where vibrating pucks skidding around on their backs

[lastlib]

6. They were REALLY COOL to watch...

with a little bitty straw poked up their ass! (Shoulda heard 'em sing THEN! )

[surrealAmerican]

2. I saw one singing on my window screen.

Up close, they are way louder. It's a remarkable quantity of sound from such a small creature.

[Ruby the Liberal]

3. Not since I was a kid

I *love* the sound they make. It is so relaxing - but I grew up with them. It would probably unnerve people who never heard them before (think My Cousin Vinnie the first night in the cabin )

[trof]

4. No, they're invisible when they 'sing'. Granny said...

When the cicadas were loud in the morning "It's gonna be a hot day.'
She was right.

[DebJ]

5. When I was a child my cat used to catch them, eat them, and then

come in the house and regurgitate them on the living room floor, all summer long.
They were not very digested.

[murielm99]

7. The first time I saw one

was when it somehow got into my kitchen.

The cat caught it and ate it quickly.

[ailsagirl]

8. They can bite...

Bites can be painful if a cicada attempts to pierce a person's skin, but they are unlikely to cause other harm. Bites are unlikely to be a defensive reaction and are rare, usually occurring when a cicada is allowed to rest on a person's body for an extended amount of time.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cicada

[a la izquierda]

9. I was in Oaxaca this summer and I heard this crazy noise.

Turns out, there's a slightly different cicada down there. I asked the guide what it was and he told me (I've since forgotten the name). I managed to hunt around for one and found it, and to my surprise, realized it was basically the same cicadas we have in the states. I guess they were just singing in Spanish or Zapotec or something.

[progressoid]

10. Our previous cat brought one in the house once. Alive.

She let it go in the bathroom.

Where it made a hell of noise.

Until I stopped it.

With a magazine.

[BlueJazz]

11. There's one species that looks like a little robot. rather cool.