The cicada or cicada, Cicada orni , stuns hot summer days in Mediterranean countries with its incessant sound, and although we call it a song, it is actually more of a percussion concert .
The deafening sound is made by males to attract females by rubbing a stridulating organ – squeaky or screeching – called the timbre . This is on the sides of the first abdominal segment. This organ consists of chitinous membranes – the timpani – and two cavities with air that function as resonance boxes. To appreciate the concert of their suitors, females have auditory organs located in the thoracic area. Although the serenade can occur at any time of the day, it is usually more intense at dusk and dawn .
