How do tymbals make sound?

They buckle in and out rapidly like drumheads

Cicada Song Quiz: Tymbals, Loud Choruses and Summer Heat

This cicada song quiz tunes in to the buzzing chorus of a hot summer day. Play 10 interactive questions on tymbals that buckle like drumheads, hollow abdomens that amplify sound, songs that can top 100 decibels, why males sing, females answering with wing clicks, each species' unique song, choruses in the heat and cicadas in ancient Greek and Chinese culture.

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🎯 Daily Trivia Challenge • 🧠 10 Questions • ⏱️ 150 Seconds

Question 1 / 10 Time: 150s

Who
Which cicadas sing loudly?
Organ
What organs make the cicada's song?
How
How do tymbals make sound?
Amplify
What helps make the song so loud?
Loud
How loud can some cicadas be?
Reply
How do some females answer males?
Unique
What is special about each species' song?
Heat
When do many cicadas sing most?
Ears
Do cicadas have hearing organs?
Culture
What did cicadas symbolize in ancient China?

Explanations: answer key for all 10 questions

Q1: Which cicadas sing loudly?
Answer: Males
They call to attract mates.
Q2: What organs make the cicada's song?
Answer: Tymbals
They sit on the abdomen sides.
Q3: How do tymbals make sound?
Answer: They buckle in and out rapidly like drumheads
Muscles pull them.
Q4: What helps make the song so loud?
Answer: A mostly hollow abdomen
It acts as a resonator.
Q5: How loud can some cicadas be?
Answer: Over 100 decibels
Close up it can hurt ears.
Q6: How do some females answer males?
Answer: With wing clicks or flicks
Males move closer.
Q7: What is special about each species' song?
Answer: It has its own pattern
Females recognize their kind.
Q8: When do many cicadas sing most?
Answer: In the heat of day
Warmth powers muscles.
Q9: Do cicadas have hearing organs?
Answer: Yes, tympana on the body
Males may shield them while singing.
Q10: What did cicadas symbolize in ancient China?
Answer: Rebirth and renewal
Jade cicadas were placed in tombs.

The Loudest Song of Summer

Male cicadas sing to attract mates using tymbals, ribbed membranes on the sides of the abdomen. Muscles pull the tymbals so they buckle in and out rapidly like tiny drumheads, producing clicks hundreds of times per second that blend into a buzz.

A largely hollow abdomen acts as a resonator, making some cicadas louder than 100 decibels, enough to hurt ears close up. Each species has its own song pattern, so females recognize their kind, and some females answer with wing clicks or flicks. Cicadas sing most in the heat of the day, when warmth powers their muscles, and they hear through tympana on the body.

Cicadas have long inspired people. In ancient China they symbolized rebirth, and jade cicadas were placed in tombs. Ancient Greek writers praised their songs, and in Japan their buzz is a classic sound of summer.

What This Quiz Teaches

Insect fans will enjoy these questions.

Who sings and why
How tymbals work
Why songs are loud
How females respond
What cicadas symbolized

Did You Know?

Cicadas drink tree sap.
Some sing in large choruses.
Their empty shells cling to trees.
Birds feast on cicadas.
Annual cicadas appear every summer.