Cicada

6556.    Came across this insect at a local park and found it again today but it looks as if it shed its outer shell. It is about an inch long and almost as wide and the first pic was taken in July. Curious as to what it is. Toronto, Ontario. Canada.

 

Number 6556.  This is the empty ‘shell’ (exoskeleton) of a cicada (Hemiptera/Auchenorrhyncha: Cicadidae), likely in the genus Neotibicen (annual/dog-day cicadas). The white filaments are the lining of its breathing tubes (tracheae). Click here for a video of the molting process.