Double Drummer
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''Thopha saccata'', the double drummer, is the largest Australian species of
cicada The cicadas () are a superfamily, the Cicadoidea, of insects in the order Hemiptera (true bugs). They are in the suborder Auchenorrhyncha, along with smaller jumping bugs such as leafhoppers and froghoppers. The superfamily is divided into two ...
and reputedly the loudest insect in the world. Documented by the Danish zoologist
Johan Christian Fabricius Johann Christian Fabricius (7 January 1745 – 3 March 1808) was a Danish zoologist, specialising in "Insecta", which at that time included all arthropods: insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others. He was a student of Carl Linnaeus, and is co ...
in 1803, it was the first described and named cicada native to Australia. Its common name comes from the large dark red-brown sac-like pockets that the adult male has on each side of its abdomen—the "double drums"—that are used to amplify the sound it produces. Broad-headed compared with other cicadas, the double drummer is mostly brown with a black pattern across the back of its
thorax The thorax (: thoraces or thoraxes) or chest is a part of the anatomy of mammals and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main di ...
, and has red-brown and black underparts. The sexes are similar in appearance, though the female lacks the male's
tymbal The tymbal (or timbal) is the corrugated exoskeletal structure used to produce sounds in insects. In male cicadas, the tymbals are membranes in the abdomen, responsible for the characteristic sound produced by the insect. In tiger moths, the t ...
s and sac-like covers. Found in
sclerophyll Sclerophyll is a type of vegetation that is adapted to long periods of dryness and heat. The plants feature hard leaves, short Internode (botany), internodes (the distance between leaves along the stem) and leaf orientation which is parallel or ...
forest in
Queensland Queensland ( , commonly abbreviated as Qld) is a States and territories of Australia, state in northeastern Australia, and is the second-largest and third-most populous state in Australia. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Austr ...
and
New South Wales New South Wales (commonly abbreviated as NSW) is a States and territories of Australia, state on the Eastern states of Australia, east coast of :Australia. It borders Queensland to the north, Victoria (state), Victoria to the south, and South ...
, adult double drummers generally perch high in the branches of large
eucalypt Eucalypt is any woody plant with Capsule (fruit), capsule fruiting bodies belonging to one of seven closely related genera (of the tribe Eucalypteae) found across Australia: ''Eucalyptus'', ''Corymbia'', ''Angophora'', ''Stockwellia'', ''Allosyn ...
s. They emerge from the ground where they have spent several years as
nymphs A nymph (; ; sometimes spelled nymphe) is a minor female nature deity in ancient Greek folklore. Distinct from other Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature; they are typically tied to a specific place, land ...
from November until March, and live for another four to five weeks. They appear in great numbers in some years, yet are absent in others.


Taxonomy

Danish naturalist
Johan Christian Fabricius Johann Christian Fabricius (7 January 1745 – 3 March 1808) was a Danish zoologist, specialising in "Insecta", which at that time included all arthropods: insects, arachnids, crustaceans and others. He was a student of Carl Linnaeus, and is co ...
described the double drummer as ''Tettigonia saccata'' in 1803, the first description of an Australian cicada. The type locality was inexplicably and incorrectly recorded as China. It was placed in the new
genus Genus (; : genera ) is a taxonomic rank above species and below family (taxonomy), family as used in the biological classification of extant taxon, living and fossil organisms as well as Virus classification#ICTV classification, viruses. In bino ...
''
Thopha ''Thopha'' (from Amyot CJB, Audinet-Serville, JG (1843) Homoptères. Homoptera Latr. n''Histoire naturelle des Insectes. Hémiptères. Deuxième partie'': 455-483. Librairie Encyclopédique de Roret, Paris, 676 pages.) is a genus of cicada nati ...
'' by French entomologists
Charles Jean-Baptiste Amyot Charles Jean-Baptiste Amyot (23 September 1799, in Vendreeuv – 13 October 1866, in Paris) was a French lawyer and entomologist especially interested in the Hemiptera. After his father died, Amyot lived with a neighbor, a wealthy merchant, who ...
and
Jean Guillaume Audinet-Serville Jean Guillaume Audinet-Serville (; his name, before the French Revolution, Revolution, included a Nobiliary particle, particle: Audinet de Serville) was a French entomologist, born on 11 November 1775 in Paris. He died on 27 March 1858 in La Fert ...
in their 1843 work ''Histoire naturelle des insectes Hemipteres'' ("Natural History of Hemiptera Insects"). The
generic Generic or generics may refer to: In business * Generic term, a common name used for a range or class of similar things not protected by trademark * Generic brand, a brand for a product that does not have an associated brand or trademark, other ...
name is derived from ''thoph'' (), meaning "
drum The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments. In the Hornbostel–Sachs classification system, it is a membranophone. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a ...
". They maintained it as native to China. The
specific name Specific name may refer to: * in Database management systems, a system-assigned name that is unique within a particular database In taxonomy, either of these two meanings, each with its own set of rules: * Specific name (botany), the two-part (bino ...
is derived from the
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
''saccus'', meaning "sac" or "bag", and more specifically "moneybag". In 1838,
Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville Félix Édouard Guérin-Méneville, also known as F. E. Guerin, (12 October 1799, in Toulon – 26 January 1874, in Paris) was a French entomologist. Life and work Guérin-Méneville changed his surname from Guérin in 1836. He was the author o ...
pointed out that the double drummer is native to Australia and not China.
John Obadiah Westwood John Obadiah Westwood (22 December 1805 – 2 January 1893) was an English people , English entomologist and archaeologist noted for his artistic talents. He published several illustrated works on insects and antiquities. He was among the first ...
designated it the
type species In International_Code_of_Zoological_Nomenclature, zoological nomenclature, a type species (''species typica'') is the species name with which the name of a genus or subgenus is considered to be permanently taxonomically associated, i.e., the spe ...
of the genus in 1843, and it is also the type species for the
tribe The term tribe is used in many different contexts to refer to a category of human social group. The predominant worldwide use of the term in English is in the discipline of anthropology. The definition is contested, in part due to conflict ...
Thophini Thophini is a tribe of cicadas in the family Cicadidae, found in Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, ...
. The
common name In biology, a common name of a taxon or organism (also known as a vernacular name, English name, colloquial name, country name, popular name, or farmer's name) is a name that is based on the normal language of everyday life; and is often con ...
is derived from the male cicada's sac-like tymbal covers ("drums") on either side of its abdomen.


Description

The adult double drummer is the largest Australian species of cicada, the male and female averaging long respectively. The
thorax The thorax (: thoraces or thoraxes) or chest is a part of the anatomy of mammals and other tetrapod animals located between the neck and the abdomen. In insects, crustaceans, and the extinct trilobites, the thorax is one of the three main di ...
is in diameter, its sides distended when compared with the thorax of other Australian cicadas. The
forewings Insect wings are adult outgrowths of the insect exoskeleton that enable insect flight, insects to fly. They are found on the second and third Thorax (insect anatomy), thoracic segments (the mesothorax and metathorax), and the two pairs are often ...
are long. The largest collected specimen has a wingspan of , while the average is . The average mass is . The sexes have similar markings, but males have large dark red-brown sac-like structures on each side of their abdomens. These cover the
tymbal The tymbal (or timbal) is the corrugated exoskeletal structure used to produce sounds in insects. In male cicadas, the tymbals are membranes in the abdomen, responsible for the characteristic sound produced by the insect. In tiger moths, the t ...
s—specialised structures composed of vertical ribs and a tymbal plate, which is buckled to produce the cicada's song. The head is much broader than that of other cicadas, and is broader than the
pronotum The prothorax is the foremost of the three segments in the thorax of an insect, and bears the first pair of legs. Its principal sclerites (exoskeletal plates) are the pronotum (dorsal), the prosternum (ventral), and the propleuron (lateral) on e ...
behind it. The head, antennae and postclypeus are black, with a narrow broken pale brown transverse band across the vertex just behind the
ocelli A simple eye or ocellus (sometimes called a pigment pit) is a form of eye or an optical arrangement which has a single lens without the sort of elaborate retina that occurs in most vertebrates. These eyes are called "simple" to distinguish the ...
. The eyes are black in young adult cicadas upon emerging, but turn brown with black
pseudopupil In the compound eye of invertebrates such as insects and crustaceans, the pseudopupil appears as a dark spot which moves across the eye as the animal is rotated. This occurs because the ommatidia that one observes "head-on" (along their optic ...
s at the posterior edge of the eye. The ocelli are deep red. The
proboscis A proboscis () is an elongated appendage from the head of an animal, either a vertebrate or an invertebrate. In invertebrates, the term usually refers to tubular arthropod mouthparts, mouthparts used for feeding and sucking. In vertebrates, a pr ...
is in length—very long compared with other Australian cicada species. The thorax is brown, becoming paler in older individuals. The pronotum is rusty brown with black anterior borders, while the
mesonotum The mesothorax is the middle of the three segments of the thorax of hexapods, and bears the second pair of legs. Its principal sclerites (exoskeletal plates) are the mesonotum (dorsal), the mesosternum ( ventral), and the mesopleuron (lateral) ...
is a little paler with prominent black markings, with paired cone-shaped spots with bases towards the front on either side of a median stripe; lateral to these spots are a pair of markings resembling a "7" on the right hand side of the mesonotum and its reverse on the left. The abdomen is black between the tymbal covers and red-brown and black more posteriorly. The underparts of the double drummer are red-brown and black, and covered in fine silvery velvety hairs. The female's
ovipositor The ovipositor is a tube-like organ used by some animals, especially insects, for the laying of eggs. In insects, an ovipositor consists of a maximum of three pairs of appendages. The details and morphology of the ovipositor vary, but typica ...
is very long, measuring . The
wings A wing is a type of fin that produces both lift and drag while moving through air. Wings are defined by two shape characteristics, an airfoil section and a planform. Wing efficiency is expressed as lift-to-drag ratio, which compares the bene ...
are vitreous (transparent) with light brown veins. The legs are dark brown and have grey velvety hairs. There is little variation in colour over its range, though occasional females are darker overall than average, with markings less prominent or absent. The double drummer is larger and darker overall than the northern double drummer ('' T. sessiliba''); the latter has a white band on the abdomen, while the former has black markings on the leading edge (
costa Costa may refer to: Biology * Rib (Latin: ''costa''), in vertebrate anatomy * Costa (botany), the central strand of a plant leaf or thallus * Costa (coral), a stony rib, part of the skeleton of a coral * Costa (entomology), the leading edge of th ...
) of the forewing extending past the
basal cell A basal cell is a general cell type that is present in many forms of epithelial tissue throughout the body. Basal cells are located between the basement membrane and the remainder of the epithelium, effectively functioning as an anchor for the epi ...
. Male cicadas make a noise to attract females, which has been described as "the sound of summer". The song of the double drummer is extremely loud—reportedly the loudest sound of any insect—and can reach an earsplitting volume in excess of 120  dB if there are large numbers of double drummers at close range. Monotonous and dronelike, the song is said to resemble high-pitched bagpipes. The sound of the buckling of the tymbal plate then resonates in an adjacent hollow chamber in the abdomen, as well as in the exterior air-filled sacs, which act as Helmholtz resonators. Singing can cease and restart suddenly, either rarely or frequently, and often ends abruptly. The song has been described as "Tar-ran-tar-rar-tar-ran-tar-rar", and consists of a series of pulses emitted at a rate of 240–250 a second. The tymbal covers are much larger than other species and also make the call louder and send it in a particular direction. There are two distinct phases of song, which the double drummer switches between at irregular intervals. One phase is a continuous call that can last for several minutes; during this period the frequency varies between 5.5 and 6.2 
kHz The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), often described as being equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose formal expression in terms of SI base uni ...
and 6.0–7.5 kHz 4–6 times a second. In the other phase, the song is interrupted by breaks of increasing frequency resulting in a
staccato Staccato (; Italian for "detached") is a form of Articulation (music), musical articulation. In modern notation, it signifies a note of shortened duration, separated from the note that may follow by silence. It has been described by theorists and ...
sound. These breaks can be mistaken for silence as the difference in volume is so great, though the song actually continues at a much lower volume. During this staccato phase, which lasts for several seconds, the frequency remains around 5.75–6.5 kHz. The frequency of the song is a high
harmonic In physics, acoustics, and telecommunications, a harmonic is a sinusoidal wave with a frequency that is a positive integer multiple of the ''fundamental frequency'' of a periodic signal. The fundamental frequency is also called the ''1st har ...
of the pulse repetition frequency, which makes for a particularly ringing sound. Double drummers congregate in groups to amplify their calls, which likely drives off potential bird predators. Male double drummers also emit a distress call—a sharp fragmented irregular noise—upon being seized by a predator.


Life cycle

The narrow spindle-shaped eggs are laid in a series of slits cut by the mother's ovipositor in branches or twigs, usually of eucalypts. On average about twelve eggs are laid in each slit, for a total of several hundred. These cuts can cause significant damage to the bark of tender trees. The eggs all hatch around 70 days later—usually within a day or two of one another—but take longer in cold or dry conditions. The larvae then fall to the ground and burrow into the soil. Though the timing of the double drummer's life cycle is unknown,
nymphs A nymph (; ; sometimes spelled nymphe) is a minor female nature deity in ancient Greek folklore. Distinct from other Greek goddesses, nymphs are generally regarded as personifications of nature; they are typically tied to a specific place, land ...
of cicadas in general then spend from four to six years underground. Unusual for Australian cicadas, double drummers emerge during the daytime. Emerging ''en masse'' generally, nymphs are covered in mud. This mud remains on their
exuvia In biology, exuviae are the remains of an exoskeleton and related structures that are left after ecdysozoans (including insects, crustaceans and arachnids) have molted. The exuviae of an animal can be important to biologists as they can often b ...
e, which emerging cicadas leave at the bases or in burnt out hollows of eucalypts. Within a forest, successive broods may emerge in different locations each year. The cicada's body and wings desiccate and harden once free of the exuvia. The adult lifespan of the double drummer is about four or five weeks. During this time, they mate and reproduce, and feed exclusively on sap of living trees, sucking it out through specialised mouthparts. Female cicadas die after laying their eggs.


Distribution and habitat

The double drummer has a
disjunct distribution In biology, a taxon with a disjunct distribution is one that has two or more groups that are related but considerably separated from each other geographically. The causes are varied and might demonstrate either the expansion or contraction of a s ...
, found from northern tropical Queensland, near Shiptons Flat and
Cooktown Cooktown is a coastal town and locality in the Shire of Cook, Queensland, Australia. Cooktown is at the mouth of the Endeavour River, on Cape York Peninsula in Far North Queensland where James Cook beached his ship, the '' Endeavour'', for ...
south to Ingham and
Sarina Sarina is a rural town and coastal Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Mackay Region, Queensland, Australia. In the , the locality of Sarina had a population of 5,619 people. Geography Sarina lies just inland of the east coa ...
, and then from
Gympie Gympie ( ) is a city and a Suburbs and localities (Australia), locality in the Gympie Region, Queensland, Australia. Located in the Greater Sunshine Coast, Gympie is about north of the state capital, Brisbane. The city lies on the Mary River ( ...
in southeastern Queensland to
Moruya Moruya ( ) is a town located on the South Coast (New South Wales), far south coast of New South Wales, Australia, situated on the Moruya River. The Princes Highway runs through the town that is about south of Sydney and from Canberra. At the , ...
in southern New South Wales. It is found in areas of higher elevation in the northern segment of its range, as the climate there is similar to that in southeast Queensland.
Walter Wilson Froggatt Walter Wilson Froggatt (13 June 1858 – 18 March 1937) was an Australian Economic entomology, economic entomologist. Early life Froggatt was born in Melbourne, Colony of Victoria, the son of George Wilson Froggatt, an English architect, and hi ...
and
Robert John Tillyard Robert "Robin" John Tillyard Fellow of the Royal Society, FRS (31 January 1881 – 13 January 1937) was an English–Australian entomology, entomologist and geologist. Early life and education Tillyard was the son of J. J. Tillyard and his wi ...
erroneously included South Australia in its distribution. Adults are present from November to early March, prolific in some years and absent in others. They are found in dry
sclerophyll Sclerophyll is a type of vegetation that is adapted to long periods of dryness and heat. The plants feature hard leaves, short Internode (botany), internodes (the distance between leaves along the stem) and leaf orientation which is parallel or ...
forest, preferring to alight and feed on large eucalypts with diameters over and sparse foliage concentrated at a height between , particularly rough-barked species, apples (''
Angophora ''Angophora'' is a genus of nine species of trees and shrubs in the myrtle family, Myrtaceae. Endemic to eastern Australia, they differ from other eucalypts in having juvenile and adult leaves arranged in opposite pairs, sepals reduced to projec ...
'') and '' Tristania''. Associated trees include the grey box (''
Eucalyptus moluccana ''Eucalyptus moluccana'', commonly known as the grey box, gum-topped box or terriyergro, is a medium-sized to tall tree with rough bark on part or all of the trunk, smooth bark above, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds usually in groups of se ...
''), snappy gum ('' E. racemosa'') and narrow-leaved apple (''
Angophora bakeri ''Angophora bakeri'', commonly known as the narrow-leaved apple, is a species of tree that is endemic to New South Wales. It has rough, fibrous bark on the trunk and branches, lance-shaped adult leaves, flower buds in groups of three or seven, w ...
'') in a study at three sites in western Sydney. At
Hawks Nest Hawk's Nest or Hawks Nest may refer to: *Hawks Nest, New South Wales, a small coastal village in Australia *Hawk's Nest (Orange County, New York), a scenic overlook near Port Jervis, New York, US *Hawks Nest (Sullivan County, New York), a mountain ...
in coastal swampy sclerophyll woodland, adults were observed mainly on swamp mahogany (''
Eucalyptus robusta ''Eucalyptus robusta'', commonly known as swamp mahogany or swamp messmate, is a tree native to eastern Australia. Growing in swampy or waterlogged soils, it is up to high with thick spongy reddish-brown bark and dark green broad leaves, which h ...
'') and sometimes blackbutt ('' E. pilularis''), as well as ''
Allocasuarina littoralis ''Allocasuarina littoralis'', commonly known as black she-oak, is a species of flowering plant in the family Casuarinaceae and is endemic to eastern Australia. It is dioecious, or less commonly a monoecious tree or shrub, that has its leaves redu ...
'' and introduced pine (''
Pinus radiata ''Pinus radiata'' ( syn. ''Pinus insignis''), the Monterey pine, insignis pine or radiata pine, is a species of pine native to the Central Coast of California and Mexico (on Guadalupe Island and Cedros island). It is an evergreen conifer in t ...
''). Nymphs feed primarily on the roots of eucalypts. The double drummer has not adapted well to city life; distribution of the species in cities is limited to natural stands of large trees.


Behaviour

In hotter weather, double drummers perch on the upper branches of trees, while on overcast or rainy days, they may be found lower down on trunks near the ground. Double drummers on tree trunks are skittish, and can fly off ''en masse'' if disturbed. Relative to other Australian cicadas they have excellent perception, fly at a moderate cruising speed of , with a similarly moderate maximum speed of , and are exceptionally adept at landing. The double drummer has been known to fly out to sea, effectively on a one-way trip as their bodies have later been found washed up on beaches. A swarm of double drummers were reported off the coast of
Sussex Inlet Sussex Inlet is a town in the South Coast region of New South Wales, Australia. The town lies on the west bank of the waterway called Sussex Inlet, which divides New South Wales from the Jervis Bay Territory. The town lies within the City of Sho ...
in January 1979, in and around the boat of a local fisherman.


Predation

As the adult cicadas emerge in the daytime, large numbers are consumed by birds. ''Thopha'' cicadas have also been found in the stomachs of foxes. The double drummer is one of the large cicada species preyed on by the cicada killer wasp (''Exeirus lateritius''), which stings and paralyses cicadas high in the trees. Their victims drop to the ground where the cicada-hunter mounts and carries them, pushing with its hind legs, sometimes over a distance of . They are then shoved into the hunter's burrow, where the helpless cicada is placed on a shelf in an often extensive "catacomb", to form food-stock for the wasp grub growing from the eggs deposited within.


Interactions with humans

Schoolchildren climb trees to collect live cicadas and keep them as pets in shoeboxes. However, they cannot easily be kept for longer than a day or two, given that they need flowing sap for food. Live adults brought into classrooms by their captors would startle the class with their piercing sound. Poems dedicated to the double drummer appeared in the '' Catholic Press'' in 1933 and 1936, describing bird predation and its life cycle to children.


See also

* List of cicadas of Australia


References


Cited text

* {{Taxonbar, from=Q7796013 Insects described in 1803 Thophini Hemiptera of Australia Taxa named by Johan Christian Fabricius