How do Cicadas make........???

Question

How do Cicadas make that noise? OOhh ya, and Why?

10 points for best answer!! ;)

Answer 1

they bring air in and then a muscle rappidly beats this membrane called a tymbal on the sides of the insect

it's loud :)

they're trying to find a mate

- they don't have much time to live so they gotta find a mate fast

Answer 2

Complicated answer, but Wiki sums it up very nicely:

From: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cicada

"Male cicadas have loud noisemakers called "timbals" on the sides of the abdominal base. Their "singing" is not the stridulation (where two structures are rubbed against one another) of many other familiar sound-producing insects like crickets: the timbals are regions of the exoskeleton that are modified to form a complex membrane with thin, membranous portions and thickened "ribs". Contracting the internal timbal muscles produces a clicking sound as the timbals buckle inwards. As these muscles relax, the timbals return to their original position producing another click. The interior of the male abdomen is substantially hollow to amplify the resonance of the sound. A cicada rapidly vibrates these membranes, and enlarged chambers derived from the tracheae make its body serve as a resonance chamber, greatly amplifying the sound. They modulate their noise by wiggling their abdomens toward and away from the tree that they are on. Additionally, each species has its own distinctive song."

As for why: (Also from Wiki)

"In addition to the mating song, many species also have a distinct distress call, usually a somewhat broken and erratic sound emitted when an individual is seized. A number of species also have a courtship song, which is often a quieter call and is produced after a female has been drawn by the calling song."

Cool huh? Bugs Rule! :)

Answer 3

They their wings together to make the noise. Only the males do it, and they do it to attract a female