Pale grass pygmy facts for kids
Punia minima is a tiny insect known as the pale grass pygmy. It's a type of cicada, which are famous for their loud buzzing sounds. This special cicada lives only in certain parts of Australia, specifically Western Australia and the Northern Territory.
Quick facts for kids Pale grass pygmy |
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Cicadidae
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| Genus: |
Punia
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| Species: |
P. minima
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| Binomial name | |
| Punia minima (Goding & Froggatt, 1904)
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Contents
About the Pale Grass Pygmy
The Punia minima is a very small cicada. It is sometimes called the pale grass pygmy because of its tiny size and color. Cicadas are insects known for their loud songs, which they make using special organs on their bodies.
What is a Cicada?
Cicadas are insects that belong to the group called Hemiptera. This group includes other insects like aphids and true bugs. Cicadas spend most of their lives underground as nymphs. They feed on the sap from tree roots.
When they are ready, they dig their way out of the ground. They then shed their skin and become adult cicadas. Adult cicadas live for only a few weeks, focusing on mating and laying eggs.
Where Does It Live?
The pale grass pygmy is an endemic species. This means it is found only in a specific area and nowhere else in the world. For Punia minima, that area is Australia.
Specifically, you can find this tiny cicada in Western Australia and the Northern Territory. These regions have the right environment for the pale grass pygmy to live and thrive.
How Small Is It?
The Punia minima is truly tiny, even for a cicada. Its wingspan, which is the distance from one wingtip to the other, is only about 10 to 13 millimeters. That's less than half an inch! This makes it one of the smallest cicadas known.
Its Scientific Name Story
When scientists first described P. minima in 1904, they gave it the name Pauropsalta minima. Over the years, its scientific name changed a few times as scientists learned more about cicadas.
In 2012, scientists decided that P. minima was so unique that it needed its own special group, called a monotypic genus. They named this new genus Punia. This meant P. minima was the only species in the Punia genus at that time.
However, in 2020, scientists discovered four more new species that were very similar to P. minima. These new species were also placed into the Punia genus. So, Punia is no longer a monotypic genus, but it still contains P. minima and its newly discovered relatives.
