Cicadas are among the most famous insects in the world, and in summer 2024, they’re set to put on quite a show in North America! This episode, we explore the function and evolution of cicadas’ most famous features, including their notoriously loud calls and their incredible life cycles, and we’ll take a peek into the past at the fossil record of cicadas and their ancient cousins.In the news: giant snakes, big kangaroos, dinosaur amino acids, and echolocation tissues.Time markers: Intro & Announcements: News: Main discussion, Part 1: Main discussion, Part 2: Patron question: Check out our website for this episode’s blog post and more: http://commondescentpodcast.com/Join us on Patreon to support the podcast and enjoy bonus content: https://www.patreon.com/commondescentpodcastGot a topic you want to hear about? Submit your episode request here: https://commondescentpodcast.com/request-a-topic/Lots more ways to connect with us: https://linktr.ee/common_descentThe Intro and Outro music is “On the Origin of Species” by Protodome. More music like this at http://ocremix.orgMusical Interludes are "Professor Umlaut" by Kevin MacLeod (incompetech.com). Licensed under Creative Commons: By Attribution 3.0 http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0