Safety in Numbers
A hardened exoskeleton only gets you so far in life when you max out at 2 inches (5 centimeters) in length. In a world of hungry birds and other wildlife looking for a bug snack, cicadas are prime targets.
Having a whole cicada posse is an emergent way of continuing survival of the brood. Last year’s Brood IX cicada invasion saw an astounding 1.5 million cicadas per acre emerge. While many will be picked off by predators, that’s simply more prey supply than predator demand. Individual cicadas will give up their lives early so that the brood may continue. It’s noble in a weird way. Props, I guess.
