Cicadas, rain and fungi!
The 2022-23 cicada season has well and truly started along the east cost of Australia and more recently in NSW. The chilling winter we have shuddered through could translate to a slower than usual start to the season.
It will be interesting to see how this summer pans out for cicadas following the record-breaking rain Sydney and NSW. The Bureau of Metereology have declared a La Nina event for a third successive year and the water table across the state has not been this high in years.
Just like we find ourselves desperately trying to air out the house to prevent an increasing risk of mould, cicada nymphs may also find themselves surrounded by higher prevalance of microbial infections with increased soil moisture. Soil pathogens can affect nymphs while underground or lie dormant in the soil until the cicada comes up. An example of the latter is a the fungi genus Massospora. If you would like to know a little about this fungus, here is a short article from a few years ago: https://www.theguardian.com/environment/2021/may/19/cicadas-fungus-mate-more-massospora-cicadina
Massospora are known to infect periodical cicadas in North America (among other species worldwide), and there is one species known in Australia - Massospora cicadettae. It has been recorded in NSW, QLD and TAS. However, there could be other species! Researchers in USA (@herebespiders11 and others) have asked if we could keep an eye out for any fungus on cicadas, take photographs and upload the cicada sighting to iNaturalist.
With the impending La Nina to hit eastern Australia we might see a higher occurrence of fungi on cicadas. Your observations could assist in the planning of future international collaborations, grants, and other research on these bizarre pathogens.
Happy hunting!
