My dog was digging around in the yard by the patio tonight, when something caught his attention. I assumed he found a mole, so I pulled him back and checked out the little patch of dirt where he was sniffing. I didn't see anything at first, but then I noticed a little cicada grub, covered in dried mud, clumsily crawling toward some crumbled-up leaves. I've seen plenty of cicada shells before, but I've never seen one pre-molting. I was going to leave him where he was, but then I thought, no, this guy shouldn't have to start his new life hooked onto a twig in the grass or clinging onto a fence post. So I scooped him up and found a better spot. Here he is perched on the trunk of an O'Rourke, starting things out proper.

cool picture,,,, hope he doesn't like figs lol

Update: the cicada is now about four feet up the tree, plotting his escape.

It better hurry in our area there a meal for the birds.

It matters not whether he likes figs. As an adult, he has no mouth parts and does not live to eat. The damage form adult cicadas is the the female will cut into a twig with her ovipositor to lay eggs. They mostly prefer young oaks, though, so the figs should be safe. Plus, the latex should deter them.

When the cyclical cicadas emerge around here, they are so many and so load, it sounds like a construction site.