I have always wanted to shoot the emergence of a cicada from its pupa. This morning, I happened to notice one crawling slowly up the outside wall of our house by the back garage door. Though the weather was drizzly and gray, I decided to commit to the project. So while the rain fell, I clicked away as the cicada slowly came out. Just as it finished, the rain POURED, which sent me back inside the garage fast. The roof eave mostly kept me dry during the half-hour shoot, but I still got dripped on.
The emergence started with a tiny crack on the topmost, backside of the pupa. I didn't get back with my camera soon enough to shoot that. Also, keep in mind that the cicada is working on a vertical plane. Every now and then, it would tremble and shake slightly as it strained to get out...
The eyes are coming out...
Now the legs and wings....
Stretching its legs...
Preparing to latch onto the shell...
Latching on!
It's time to GET OUT!
The cicada moved very quickly during this sequence....
It's OUT!
I checked on the cicada later and shot this photo below.............
