Cicadettini

Cicadettini is distinguished from other cicada tribes primarily by male genitalia morphology, particularly the structure of claspers and aedeagus. Species within the tribe are often small to medium-sized (9–15 mm body length in many grassland genera). Identification to genus and species level typically requires examination of male genitalia, detailed analysis of calling song structure, and sometimes genetic data, as many species are morphologically cryptic.

Habitats are diverse and genus-dependent. Australian members occupy arid and semi-arid grasslands, shrublands, and vegetation associated with seasonal riverine floodplains. Some species are tightly associated with specific soil types, including poorly drained, clay-rich soils. Moroccan species occur in North African habitats. New Zealand species have radiated across diverse terrestrial environments.

Worldwide distribution except the Neotropics. Documented from Australia (Queensland, New South Wales, Northern Territory, South Australia, Western Australia), New Zealand, South Africa (Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal), Pakistan (Indomalayan and Palaearctic ecozones), Morocco, Greece, and other Palearctic regions.

Nymphs feed on xylem fluid from tree and shrub roots. Adults feed on tree sap using piercing-sucking mouthparts.

Nymphs develop underground, feeding on root xylem. Duration of nymphal stage varies: some species have multi-year cycles (including periodical emergence patterns in some lineages), while others may complete development in shorter timeframes. Adults are short-lived, typically surviving four to six weeks. Females deposit eggs in slits cut into bark of twigs using a saw-toothed ovipositor.

Males produce species-specific calling songs using abdominal tymbals. Song structure varies substantially: some species emit simple repetitive ticking or buzzing echemes, while others produce complex songs with multiple elements, rapid amplitude changes, and abrupt frequency modulations. Many grassland species are mobile and wary, while others are relatively sedentary. Acoustic signaling is the primary mechanism for mate location and species recognition.

As xylem feeders, nymphs and adults transfer nutrients between plant roots and canopy. Mass emergences may provide pulsed food resources for predators. The tribe harbors obligate bacterial endosymbionts that manufacture essential amino acids, representing a specialized nutritional mutualism.

Periodical cicadas (genus Magicicada), historically classified within Cicadettini, are subjects of intensive ecological and evolutionary research due to their prime-numbered life cycles and mass emergence events. Some species are used in educational laboratory exercises to teach cicada biology. The loud choruses of some species contribute to summer soundscapes in inhabited areas.

• CicadatriniBoth are tribes within Cicadettinae; distinguished by male genitalia morphology and song characteristics
• TaphuriniOverlaps in distribution and habitat; Cicadettini distinguished by genitalic and acoustic traits

• cicada
• true bug
• acoustic communication
• grassland
• arid habitat
• periodical cicada
• xylem feeder
• endosymbiont

• BugGuide
• Wikipedia
• iNaturalist taxon
• NCBI Taxonomy
• Catalogue of Life
• How Do Cicadas Know When to Emerge from the Ground?
• A new genus and new species of Cicadettini (Hemiptera: Cicadidae: Cicadettinae) from Pakistan
• A new genus and three new species of South African Cicadettini (Hemiptera: Cicadidae: Cicadettinae)
• An impressive new species of mugadina from queensland with notes on a congeneric species (cicadidae: cicadettinae: cicadettini)
• Three new cicada species of the genus Gudanga Distant (Insecta: Cicadidae: Cicadettinae: Cicadettini) from Queensland; comparative morphology, songs, behaviour and distributions
• New species of Simona Moulds, 2012 and Chelapsalta Moulds, 2012 cicadas (Cicadidae: Cicadettinae: Cicadettini) from Australia: comparative morphology, songs, behaviour and distributions
• Two new genera and five new species of Mugadina-like small grass cicadas (Hemiptera: Cicadidae: Cicadettini) from Central and Eastern Australia: comparative morphology, songs, behaviour and distributions
• Five new species of grass cicadas in the genus Graminitigrina (Hemiptera: Cicadidae: Cicadettinae: Cicadettini) from Queensland and Northern Territory, Australia: comparative morphology, songs, behaviour and distributions
• Morphology, songs and genetics identify two new cicada species from Morocco: Tettigettalna afroamissa sp. nov. and Berberigetta dimelodica gen. nov. & sp. nov. (Hemiptera: Cicadettini)