This past Friday, Fiazko and I went hiking (strolling would probably be a more accurate description, actually) in Glen Helen, a nature preserve in Yellow Springs Ohio. It's a great place, and when I lived in Yellow Springs I couldn't spend enough time there (the events detailed in my thread about watching a snake eat a frog took place in the glen)
This time we watched a pair of centipedes copulating, which was interesting, but the highlight of the hike was watching a cicada emerge from its carapace. In NE Kansas, in August, nearly every tree and fence post is dotted with empty cicada carapaces, but I've never seen one being vacated. I think that I was 8 or so the first time I thought about what it must look like, and ever since then I've been hoping to see it happen. Kind of a strange life goal, I admit, but nonetheless I've always thought of it as one.
It's not the kind of thing that translates well into a prose account, but happily I had my camera along, and happier still Fiazko is a damned good photographer. I think I took a few pictures of the thing, but they mostly came out as indistinct blobs. In any case, I was too occupied with watching the process, which took probably an hour, to spend much time fiddling with the camera. If Fiazko hadn't been along, there would be no pictures of it.
By rights this series should be on her Flickr site, but because the pictures were on my camera, and because I wanted to share them, I uploaded them to mine.
[ August 01, 2005, 11:23 AM: Message edited by: Noemon ]
Posted by Goody Scrivener (Member # 6742) on :
ooh very cool! (and we get to see what you look like too, bonus!)
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
Freakin' cool. Thanks!
Posted by CT (Member # 8342) on :
Oh, wow. That is so cool.
I used to collect discarded carapaces, way back when.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
I didn't collect them, but I spent a lot of time looking at them under a magnifying glass and playing with them.
Hmmm...I wonder if you could fill one with plaster and get a good model from it?
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
The cool thing about watching cicadas emerge, is right after they come out of the shell (about your last photo there) -- you can actually see their wings grow. Their wings just start stretching and stretching until they are about twice the size they were when they first emerged.
It is the coolest thing ever.
Posted by rivka (Member # 4859) on :
Very cool.
Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
FG, that was extremely cool. It was almost like it happened instantaneously.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
I just added some text on the first picture that includes the stuby pre-expansion wings that talks about this.
Fiazko, you felt like it happened instantaneously? I felt like it was a slow process--slow enough that I couldn't see it happening, but had to look away and look back again to perceive the progress of the unfurling. I agree, Farmgirl, the wings were probably the coolest part of the whole thing. I couldn't believe how much like fins they looked at first, and the accordion-like way that they expanded was just incredibly interesting. I'd love to capture that on video at some point.
Posted by mr_porteiro_head (Member # 4644) on :
I've wanted to see this since I was a little kid, too.
The evil twin wins. Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
Well, I missed a lot since I was focusing on taking pictures, so it seemed like it happened pretty quickly. I can see why you thought it was a slow process, though. Posted by KarlEd (Member # 571) on :
Fantastic photos. It's ironic you get this now instead of last year when they were out by the millions.
(Anyone else think noemon is kinda cute? )
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
Posted by CT (Member # 8342) on :
*grin
Posted by Scott R (Member # 567) on :
Noemon's the one with the dreamy green skin and the wings, right?
Yeah. . . she's hawt.
Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
*snort*
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
quote:(Anyone else think noemon is kinda cute? [Blushing] )
(wonders if Fiazko thinks so) Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
As a baby's butt.
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
It should surprise no one that fiazko picked a simile involving a butt. Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
Aw, crap. (Oh look, I did it again.)
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
(that's even FUNNIER!) edit(replying to Jake)
Yes -- you notice how many pictures she got of that cicada's back side????
Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
Hmmm, if only you had seen the rest of the pictures.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
You're right! It's an inter-species butt fetish!
Now that's just...ew.
Posted by Farmgirl (Member # 5567) on :
feel free to share..........
Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
You know, I could explain, but it would suck the entertainment value right out of this thread, so set your imaginations free.
Posted by Noemon (Member # 1115) on :
:: puzzled ::
Are you talking about the pictures of the centipedes going at it? Because those didn't really come out.
Posted by fiazko (Member # 5812) on :
No. Although, I am curious as to why that keeps happening to us.
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