17-year Locust Emerging

This was the year of the 17-year locust, not to be seen again till 2021. I was at a meeting in Maryland where they were all over the place. At night they come out of the ground, climb up trees, and the winged animal emerges for a few days of frantic mating. I went to a nearby park at sunset and caught this locust in the process of emerging. The photo is a little bit creepy, perhaps, but I found it really fascinating to watch them. And the eyes really are that red.