Pharaoh Cicada (Magicicada septendecim) lives in deciduous forests across Eastern North America. It feeds on tree sap fluids. Its conservation status is Near Threatened.
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The Pharaoh cicada is the largest and most northern periodical cicada, occurring across Canada and the United States. It is especially noted for its seventeen-year life rhythm, a pattern that defines the species. The median span from egg to natural adult death is about seventeen years, although the cycle can vary. This long underground development makes the insect a striking seasonal phenomenon in the northern part of its range.
Male Pharaoh cicadas produce a sharp, high-pitched trill that listeners describe as a "weeeee-whoa" or the word "Pharaoh". This distinctive call is a hallmark of the species and is also found in the recently identified thirteen-year cousin, Magicicada neotredecim. The similarity of the songs links the two species despite their different emergence periods. The sound is produced during the brief above-ground phase when males seek mates.
An individual Pharaoh cicada typically spends around seventeen years underground before emerging as an adult, representing the median of its life cycle. Nevertheless, some cicadas emerge as early as thirteen years or linger up to twenty-one years before emergence.
While the median development period for the Pharaoh cicada is about seventeen years, individuals do not all follow that exact timetable. Records show that some emerge after only thirteen years, whereas others remain underground for as long as twenty-one years before surfacing. This flexibility is noted in the species' life-cycle data, which states the median is around seventeen years but the range can span from thirteen to twenty-one years.
Observers in the 18th century wrote that these insects arrive in "incredible numbers" roughly every seventeen years, yet in the intervening years they are heard or seen only as solitary insects.
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In the scorching summer air, the Pharaoh Cicada emerges, its tawny wings unfolding like a map to a hidden world, as it embarks on a 17-year journey that has been etched in its ancient DNA. With a haunting melody, it fills the forest with an ethereal song, a siren's call that echoes through the trees, a symphony of life that has been silence for nearly two decades. As it moves through the world, its very existence is a testament to the enduring power of nature, a reminder of the mysteries that lie just beyond our reach.
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