The Cicadas of Summer

The evening roar (a noise I never heard for 22 years in Ireland) has returned, sounding just the same as in Malaysia, and to me it says summer is here in full strength, along with heat and thunderstorms.

Two empty shells hang from the milkweeds out front. (I planted them for the Monarch butterflies and am still waiting)

Yesterday this cicada was moving slowly on the ground, but seemed OK.

In a hollow (half rotten) Catalpa tree 6 months ago I found a pupa in damp wood particles. I kept it in a  jar through the winter with lots of the wood bits. A week ago it swam to the top and looked around.

I saw it had eaten half the wood so I refilled the jar and it’s back at work, eating again. It weighs 5 gm now.

 

I’m guessing it is another cicada?

Home at last

Nice to be peacefully back from the other side of the world.

Police checkpoints on major Kualar Lumpur seemed to tone down what was setting up to be a nasty election reform rally. Color yellow was outlawed – I wore my ‘I surrender’ white Tee shirt. On the previous day I’d test worn my nice presentation orange MSG shirt without problems.

Bees needed more space -they’re breeding like flies. I gave them a new box with 8 frames of flat wax sheet. By next evening all frames have at ieast 3 mm of drawn out new hexagonal cells.

Next morning they’re still saying they need more.