How Long Do Cicadas Live Above Ground?

If you live among large numbers of deciduous trees, it's likely that cicadas are developing beneath the soil. Native to North America, cicadas have adapted well to leafy suburban living. While the majority of cicada species live among deciduous trees, some members of the family are found among pine trees or near swamps or the seaside. Cicadas dwelling beneath woodlands tend to have longer cycles than other species, but that doesn't affect the time spent above ground.

Female cicadas lay their eggs among small branches and tree twigs. Approximately six weeks later, these eggs hatch. The cicada nymphs fall onto the soil, burrowing underneath the ground. They feed on sap from the roots of trees, woody plants, grasses and herbal plants. Once underground, the nymphs of all species pass through four molts. The fifth and final molt occurs above ground, when they have emerged for their particular cycle.

Cicadas emerge in huge groups, numbering millions of insects. When the right periodical cycle occurs, cicadas begin emerging when the ground hits a certain nighttime temperature, as they appear after dark. Each cicada sheds that final skin on a tree, with the exoskeleton hardening within a few hours. "Stragglers" are those cicadas emerging in an off-year, usually involving relatively few insects. Although stragglers can appear in any year, they most often occur the year prior to a larger emergence or the succeeding season.

The song that fills the air a few days after cicadas emerge is that of males producing their mating calls. The life of the emerged male cicada consists primarily of singing, flying and mating. Short as the life of the aboveground cicada might be, it's full of sex. Males and females mate continuously, with many partners. The female's ovipositor -- a sharp egg-laying tube off her back end -- allows her to create slits in branches in which she then deposits her roughly 500 eggs. She then falls off the branch and dies. Males might live a few days longer.