We have all suffered some summer’s insomnia due to the annoying sound caused by this group of animals. There are more than 3000 species of cicadas in the world and when they become adults they can produce their famous songs from the trees. Today we will focus on one species Australian, Psaltoda claripennis known as the Clanger’s cicada.
The Clanger Cicada is found in eastern Australia and is common in Brisbane and nearby areas, where it can easily be seen on tree branches, sometimes in groups. They have the same appearance as a common cicada, with males about 30 mm long and females slightly smaller, about 25 mm long.
There is not much more information on its natural history. This species was really just one of many cicada species until a few years ago when an interesting discovery was made.
Cicada wings are beautiful structures and are generally very clean. In fact, many insect species find ways to keep their wings clean even in heavily polluted environments, and one of the reasons is that insect wings are extremely hydrophobici.e. they repel water like many plant leaves. As water has difficulty trying to adhere to their wings, water-associated micro-organisms cannot reach the wings either.
But the wings of the Clanger cicada are more than just hydrophobic. Studies have shown that each cell of gram-negative bacteria that touches the wing surface is deformed and dies. However, this was not the case for gram-positive bacteria. As studies progressed, research began to understand the structural arrangement of the wings. Their surface is made up of very small pillars, only 30 nm high and 170 nm apart. When a bacteria gram-negative bacteria fall onto these pillars, their soft membranes begin to slide into the space between them and stretch enough to rupture. The poor cell ends up as a dead, deformed mass. Gram-positive bacteria have stiffer cell walls and are resistant to stretching, but treating them with microwaves decreased their stiffness and allowed them to be killed as well.
Credits to
Pogod i n et al.
(2013) .
Further research into this structure may lead to the development of new materials that remain sterile even after contact with a pathogen.
Once again, the diversity of life forms left us with new ways to improve our society. How many more useful things are hidden in nature? Preserving ecosystems is the best thing for every inhabitant of this planet.