Hey there! Have you ever heard a loud chirping sound outside? I used to hear it all the time, and it turns out it was made by insects like crickets. But one spring, everyone was talking about something called cicadas. They said there would be lots of them that summer, and they were right! The sound was so loud it filled my whole neighborhood. But here’s the funny part—I never actually saw the cicadas! I was super curious about them, and so is my friend Elia. Let’s find out more together!
Elia asked a great question: how do cicadas make such a loud noise? I wanted to know too! We can make sounds by talking, clapping, or even stomping our feet. But insects are different. They have antennae, six legs, and sometimes wings. So, how do they make sounds?
Let’s start by watching how grasshoppers and crickets make sounds. When a grasshopper makes noise, its legs move up and down really fast. For crickets, their wings move quickly. When the wings stop, the sound stops too. These insects move parts of their bodies to make noise, but they use different parts—grasshoppers use their legs, and crickets use their wings.
If you look closely at a grasshopper’s leg, you’ll see a bumpy ridge. Crickets have something similar on their wings. They rub these bumpy ridges against other body parts to make noise. It’s like when you rub a stick across the ridges of a musical instrument to make a sound. These insects just do it super fast!
Now, let’s see how cicadas make noise. Unlike grasshoppers and crickets, cicadas don’t move their legs or wings much. Instead, they have a special body part called a tymbal. When a cicada moves its tymbals, it makes a sound. It’s like pressing down on a metal cap and letting it spring back to make a clicking sound.
Cicadas flex their muscles to move the tymbals back and forth. They can do this super fast—about 300 to 400 clicks in one second! All those clicks blend together into a loud buzzing noise. Cicadas are some of the loudest insects on Earth. When many cicadas click together, it sounds like a big chorus, filling the air with their song.
So, cicadas and other insects use different body parts than we do to make sounds. Grasshoppers use their legs, crickets use their wings, and cicadas use their tymbals. These insects move their body parts really fast to create their unique sounds.
That’s all for today! Keep exploring and stay curious about the world around you. There are so many mysteries to discover. See you next time!
Sound Detective: Go on a nature walk with an adult and listen carefully for different insect sounds. Try to identify if the sound is coming from a grasshopper, cricket, or cicada. Use a notebook to draw a picture of the insect you think is making the sound and write down what body part you think they are using to make it. Share your findings with your class or family!
Musical Insects: Create your own “insect orchestra” using everyday items. Find objects that can mimic the sounds of grasshoppers, crickets, and cicadas. For example, use a comb and a stick to mimic a cricket’s wings or a metal cap to mimic a cicada’s tymbals. Experiment with different speeds and rhythms to see how the sound changes.
Insect Sound Experiment: With the help of an adult, watch a video of cicadas, grasshoppers, or crickets making sounds. Try to imitate the sounds using your voice or by clapping your hands. Discuss with a friend or family member how these sounds are similar or different from the sounds humans make. Why do you think insects make these sounds?
Sure! Here’s a sanitized version of the transcript:
—
Hey, it’s Esther! Growing up, I would hear a chirping sound outside—maybe you’ve heard it too. I knew it was made by insects like crickets, but I never thought much about it. Then one spring, adults started making a big deal about something called cicadas. There were going to be lots of cicadas that summer, and sure enough, I heard them. They made a sound so loud it filled my entire neighborhood. But the strange thing is, I never saw the cicadas. I was so curious about them, and someone named Elia is too. Let’s give Elia a call now.
Hi there! Hey Elia, I have a question for you: how do cicadas make so much noise? That’s a great question! Once I finally found out that cicadas look like this, I wanted to know the same thing. How does this small insect make such a huge noise? I mean, people can just open their mouths and let sound out. We can also make sound by snapping our fingers, clapping our hands, or stomping our feet. But insect bodies are very different from ours. They have parts like antennae, six legs, and sometimes wings. Some insects have mouthparts shaped like pincers or curled tubes. If we can use our bodies to shout, snap, and clap, what do insects do to make sound?
To figure this out, let’s listen and watch as two insects make sound. First, here’s a grasshopper, and second, here’s a cricket. Now I’ll play them both at the same time without sound. I’m curious what you notice. How do you think these insects make noise? Now would be a good time to pause the video and discuss.
Okay, ready? I’m not sure how you answered, but maybe you noticed that these insects are moving parts of their bodies. The grasshopper’s legs start moving up and down really fast. The cricket’s legs don’t seem to move much, but its wings move really fast. And when the wings stop moving, the sound stops too. Grasshoppers and crickets move body parts back and forth to make sound, but they use different body parts—legs and wings.
Take a close look here at the inside of this grasshopper’s leg. It’s got this bumpy ridge. There’s something similar on this cricket’s wing. If we look closely, we can see it’s actually lots of tiny ridges. Grasshoppers and crickets rub these bumpy ridges back and forth against other body parts to make noise. It’s kind of like the ridges on this instrument; when you rub a stick across them, it makes a noise too. Only these insects move their body parts even faster.
Now see what you notice about this cicada as it makes noise. I don’t see its legs moving, and its wings don’t move much either. But do you notice how its body is moving? When this person gently lifts the cicada’s wing, being careful not to hurt it, you can get a better look. Watch this part here; see how it shakes back and forth? This is a special body part called a tymbal. There’s a tymbal under the other wing too. The tymbal is making sound as it moves, but unlike the grasshopper’s legs or the cricket’s wings, the cicada isn’t rubbing anything against it. Instead, a tymbal works more like a metal cap from a container. When you push down on the flexible center and let it spring back, it makes clicking sounds.
When you saw the cicada’s body moving, it was flexing muscles that move its tymbals back and forth. That makes part of the tymbals bend and spring back like the metal cap. Imagine for a moment that you have tymbals on the sides of your belly. See how fast you can flex your belly muscles to make your tymbals move. Kind of tiring, right? While a cicada can move its tymbals back and forth super fast—fast enough to make 300 to 400 clicks in one second. All those clicks blend together into one big buzzing noise. Cicadas are amongst the loudest insects on Earth, and we usually don’t hear just one. That sound on a warm summer afternoon is dozens and dozens of cicadas. They sync up the rhythm of their clicks to make an even bigger sound. It’s like how the crowd in a stadium can clap and stomp together to make a thunderous beat, or how the singers in a chorus can fill a room with music. A group of cicadas clicking in sync can make a sound that fills a forest or your neighborhood. Scientists even call a group of cicadas a chorus.
So, in summary, cicadas and some other insects use different body parts than we do to make sound. Grasshoppers use their legs, crickets use their wings, and cicadas use special body parts called tymbals. These insects move their body parts back and forth really fast to make sounds.
That’s all for this week’s question. Thanks, Elia, for asking it! Now for the next episode, we reached into our question jar and picked out three questions sent to us that we’re thinking about answering next. When this video is done playing, you’ll get to vote on one. You can choose from: Do all flowers smell good? Why are the Olympic Games so popular? Or why does it get hot in the summer? So submit your vote when the video is over. We want to hear from all of you watching. There are mysteries all around us. Stay curious, and see you next week!
—
Let me know if you need any further modifications!
