Tri-Mountain National Scenic Area Headquarters

• Photographer: Teacher Gaga

Do you know that Cryptotympana hoisti also exists in the Tri-Mountain Scenic Area? Now let me take you to have a look! Cryptotympana hoisti is a common animal in the Lion’s Head Mountain Scenic Area. The body length of Cryptotympana hoisti is about 4.6 - 5.1 cm. It is a Cryptotympana with the largest body type in Taiwan. Its body color is black, and the young individual is covered with golden fine hair; its upper wings are transparent, and its front half wings have orange-brown veins. The adult appears from May to September, it inhabits low-altitude trees, and its chirping is very loud. In Lion’s Head Mountain, the song of these “summer singers” is noisy, especially when they perform in chorus, but if we know that these cicadas are making their life efforts to reproduce, understanding will arise spontaneously. Moreover, if summertime in Lion’s Head Mountain lacks these summer singers, it may be a little lonely!

Cryptotympana hoisti spends most of its life in the dark and damp underground, surrounded by natural enemies, such as ants, cicada bacteria and insectivorous animals. Mature nymphs that are lucky enough to escape natural enemies have the chance to come out of the ground and take the road of emergence. A mature nymph can climb to a height of one or two meters of neighboring trees at night for the process of “a cicada casting off its skin”. The cryptotympana that has just unshelled is very weak and has no ability to fly. At this time, birds are its most dangerous enemy. When the sun comes out, its wings become hard, and it can shake its wings and fly to branches and join in the “summer chorus” of its fellows.

The adult life is very short. This species lives in flat or low-altitude mountainous areas. Adults emerge from May to September. Their chirping is loud, and they are widely distributed throughout the island.