Cacophony

I just came in from letting Cerys out, and a question hit me (yes, it has before, but I forget to write it down)...

If aliens came to earth, what would they make of the loud, unnerving (for many) sound made by cicadas or the phosphorescence of lightning bugs?

Even as a child I loved these two insects, collecting cast-off cicada exoskeletons or catching and releasing fireflies. But you have to admit, they're rather odd.

Anyway, I was basking in the glow and the sound tonight. I find it hilarious that people were acting like Martians were invading when the first cicadas of the year starting arriving in droves. I was pretty sure they didn't eat crops, etc. and indeed, adults, like mayflies, are all about mating rather than eating. For more on cicadas, try the Cicada FAQ.

PS I know I write about bugs a lot. I like bugs...always have. I wanted to be an entomologist (although I also love entymology) when I grew up, and did a 4-H project (modified, as I didn't want to actually kill the critters) on insects when I was about 9 or 10. I've always been fascinated with the world they encounter (which must be very different from ours, where a pebble is a hill and a rock is a mountain...it's like Flatland in action. I was the only kid in the neighbourhood who would calmly let a mud dauber fly onto her and walk around (because I knew that they were unlikely to sting, and even less likely if you just stayed still rather than flap around). This, along with punching the nose of a particularly annoying bully who was picking on a 4-year-old and getting banned from one yard for pretending to be pregnant with a doll up my shirt (I was 9, how was I to know the other kids didn't know where babies came from?), were my main claims to fame with the neighbourhood kids.