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Luminary Oddities · Natural history & art
Distantalna splendida
Hemiptera / Cicadidae
Distantalna splendida is an Asian cicada with partly translucent wings, pale green basal hindwing fields and a dark body marked with yellow and red. Field photographs document adults feeding and a female laying eggs in Thailand.
Read the species account
Distantalna splendida belongs to Cicadidae. The Catalogue of Life treatment places it in Distantalna and records Tosena splendida as its original combination. [1]
Distant’s monograph describes a black dorsal body with yellow marks on the head and thorax, and red marks at the front of the head and beneath the body. The forewings are partly translucent, with yellow veins broadly bordered in dark colour near the base. The hindwings are pale green over much of their basal area, with a dark outer field enclosing pale spots. [5]
Distant recorded wing expansion of 122–127 mm in his material. He also described paler individuals with weaker body and wing markings. [5]
The 2016 regional catalogue records museum material from the Khasi Hills and Myanmar, and lists India, Yunnan in China, Thailand and Vietnam within the compiled distribution. [2]
Boulard’s Thai field photographs show a female placing eggs into a dried twig with her ovipositor. The photographed sequence records successive insertion sites along the twig. [6]
Thai photographs published by Boulard show adult males feeding on branches of Sapindus rarak, a member of Sapindaceae. [6]
Distant initially interpreted differences in darkness between two specimens as differences between the sexes. After examining further material, he identified the dark pattern as the normal coloration and described the paler pattern as a variation. [5]
The partly translucent outer wing fields contrast with the pale green basal hindwing area and dark venation. Both the underside and dorsal view contribute to the red, yellow and black body pattern. [5]
The Midnight and Holo editions place the cicada within contrasting settings. Clear contours keep the wing outline legible while the framing emphasizes the pale green fields and dark pattern.
Keep the enclosure closed and display it away from direct sunlight, dampness and strong heat. Clean only the exterior according to the maker’s instructions. Seek conservation advice if moisture, pests or loose fragments appear inside.
Catalogue of Life via GBIF · Accessed 2026-10-09
Price and colleagues; Biodiversity Data Journal (2016) · Accessed 2026-10-09
Distant; Fauna of British India · Accessed 2026-10-04
Australian Museum · Accessed 2026-10-09
William Lucas Distant (1889–1892) · Accessed 2026-10-11
Michel Boulard, Bulletin de la Société entomologique de France 108(2):185–200 (2003) · Accessed 2026-10-11
Framed and digital artworks featuring this species. Current options and prices are listed on Etsy.
Sources checked 2026-10-11. Illustrations · Luminary Oddities.
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