Short Answer
Australian cicadas nourish themselves through the process of sucking plant sap by employing their particular mouth organs that pierce plant tissue. The lifecycle of Australian cicadas depends on plant fluids because adult insect forms drink tree branch and woody shrub sap and immature forms use roots to get their sap.
Long Answer
The noisy creatures known as cicadas stand out with their life cycle patterns as well as their loud sounds. The Australian insect population demonstrates high abundance throughout the nation while they live underground before transforming into adult forms. The foods cicadas consume for survival directly influence their ability to exist within their environment so we better understand their position in the ecosystem.
Cicadas’ Feeding Mechanism
Cicadas classify under the order Hemiptera together with aphids and scale insects that possess piercing-sucking mouthparts as their main feeding mechanism. The needle-like stylets which cicadas possess allow these insects to draw up sap by inserting them into plant tissues instead of performing leaf-chewing. The hollow labium with its long beak supports stylets during non-feeding periods yet the bug uses its piston motion to draw liquid.
What Do Adult Cicadas Eat?
Cicadas in maturity stage consume fluids from tree branches and woody shrubs. The hosts which attract cicadas most frequently are plants such as Eucalyptus trees as well as Oaks, maples, willows, and ash trees.
- Eucalyptus trees – a major source of sustenance for Australian cicadas.
- Cicadas frequently eat sap from oak trees and maple trees as well as ash trees and willows.
- Native plants of all sizes serve as food sources for cicadas because they adapt to whatever suitable vegetation is available.
Research reveals that mature cicadas produce no meaningful destruction of plants when they drink plant fluids. The egg-laying process of female cicadas involves making small openings in tree branches yet this leads to only temporary weakness in plants.
What Do Cicada Nymphs Eat?
The feeding technique of nymphal cicadas exists entirely separate from adult cicadas. Nymphs hatch from eggs and immediately slip to the ground before entering the soil to find roots for feeding on plant juices. The plant’s xylem releases fluids to the nymphs who feed on these discharge substances that carry water and nutrients from roots to leaves.
Nymphs pass multiple years underground between emergence until they mature to adulthood. Despite causing no significant harm to plants, the feeding activities of numerous cicada nymphs together could potentially decrease plant development rates.
How Do Cicadas Differ From Locusts in Their Diet?
Local residents frequently confuse cicadas with locusts although they represent two different insect species.
The mouthparts of locusts resemble those of grasshoppers while their cylindrical bodies enable them to eat leaves as well as stems and entire plants thus causing severe agricultural damage throughout broad areas.
Cicadas maintain a diet based on plant sap while they refrain from conducting the equivalent damage to vegetation which locusts inflict.
What Don’t Cicadas Eat?
The dietary preferences of cicadas remain very specific because they avoid eating numerous foods:
- Their feeding habits differ from other plant-feeding insects because they fail to consume leaves, flowers, or fruits through chewing.
- These insects refuse to feed on alternative insects and other organisms.
- Cicadas avoid blood draining and stinging activities and do not transfer diseases to humans or other living beings.
- Grasshoppers and caterpillars do not match the destructive behavior of cicadas when it comes to home gardens.
Predators of Cicadas
Cicadas take plant sap as their food while serving as food for multiple organisms in the food chain. Multiple animals act as predators to cicadas through their feeding habits.
- Birds – one of the biggest consumers of cicadas.
- At night, Bats enter the forest to pursue cicadas.
- Spiders, wasps, ants, and mantids – all prey on cicadas at different life stages.
- The life cycle of tree crickets together with beetle larvae undergoes parasitic infections by various insects which develop inside their underground nymphs.
Conclusion
The Australian ecosystem depends on Cicadas because they ingest plant fluids while serving as dietary sustenance for various wildlife. The speciation in their nutritional requirements makes them consume only the liquid substances found in trees and shrubs. The sap consumption activities of cicadas have no major negative effect on plants but support the natural transfer of energy within ecological systems.
The loud cicada song during summer indicates their presence on tree branches while they drink sap before starting their brief adult phase.
