Massospora cicadina

On May 22, 115 visitors enjoyed cicada craft activities and guided hikes at Fullersburg Woods Forest Preserve. During our cicada hikes we explored species ID and observed M. cassinii, M. septendecim, and M. septemdecula. The most interesting find was a pharaoh cicada missing its abdomen and exhibiting the fruiting body of a fungus, Massospora cicadina.

Cicadas with Massospora have been portrayed in the media as 'zombie cicadas', which is half-true. Massospora infects 17-year and 13-year periodical cicadas, typically while they are in their nymph stage. The fungal spores are spread into the soil and will lie dormant in cicadas until they emerge from underground. However, once emerged, Massospora releases psilocybin into the cicada's body which alters the cicada's behavior - causing it to become increasingly reproductively active, despite missing a third of it's body and all reproductive organs. These hyper... 'active' individuals flick their wings to attract other cicadas to them and attempt mating with the other cicadas to spread the spores. As cicadas begin to die off, post-mating, their dead carcasses fall to the ground and the spores are returned to the soil where they can find a new cicada nymph over the next 17 or 13 years.

NOTE: This is a totally natural part of nature. Cicadas infected with Massospora are not a risk to human health either.

This is an incredibly uncommon occurrence in our state. Before 2024, only two iNaturalist records of Massospora cicadina were documented in Illinois. With the discovery of Massospora in DuPage County, there is great interest in discovering what other forest preserves the fungus may be present at. Therefore, the taxa of Massospora cicadina has been added to this project to help scientists track its presence. If you find a cicada with a Massospora infection, document it with the identification of Massospora (cicadina) and in the notes, describe the species of cicada.

Posted on May 24, 2024 01:51 PM by naturalist_glenn