A 13-year cicada clings to the brim of a ball cap after pushing out of its shell in western Ouachita Parish during the last emergence.
They're the Rip Van Winkles of the insect world, emerging after more than a decade of hibernation for a frantic, frenzied few weeks of life above ground before laying their eggs and dying.
Three species of Magicicada, commonly called 13-year cicadas, will emerge like zombies from the grave throughout most of eastern Louisiana as soon as the soil temperature reaches 65 degrees.
"When these insects emerge in early May, their only goal in life is to mate, lay their eggs and then die," said Christopher Carlton, LSU AgCenter entomologist and director of the Louisiana State Arthropod Museum. ...