Why are cicadas so loud and where in Singapore have droves of them appeared?

Discover why cicadas are so loud and where they've emerged in Singapore. Learn about their life cycle and behaviour. Read more at straitstimes.com.

SINGAPORE – In temperate parts of the world, the song of the cicadas often signals the arrival of summer when the warming earth triggers their emergence.

In tropical Singapore, however, the environmental cues behind their appearance are less understood.

On March 1, a task force was launched in Tampines Changkat to study such patterns for one cicada species that has mysteriously appeared in annual swarms from around 2019, in a bid to quell their numbers.

The Straits Times explains why cicadas are so loud, and what is known about those that dwell here.

The Republic has recorded at least 11 species of cicadas, with the latest being the orange-winged cicada (Platypleura fulvigera) behind the Tampines Changkat swarms.

The insects have a range of colours from the jade green cicada to the black and scarlet cicada.