With their glowing red eyes, cicadas look like tiny screaming aliens. To add to the effect, they come from underground, squirming forth every few years, they molt and leave their old exoskeleton absolutely everywhere, they freak out kids and entice dogs. It’s not hard to picture them starring in an old-school B-movie: Cicadas! From! Space! That’s why entomologist Chris Simon is eager to remind us that they’re really just Earthlings like us.
