Gaeana
Genus of true bugs
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Gaeana (from Sanskrit: गायन, romanized: gāyana, lit. 'singer'[1]) is a genus of cicadas, most members of which have colourful marking on their forewings, found across tropical and temperate Asia. Their bright wing patterns have been hypothesized as being a case of Batesian mimicry where the toxic models may be day-flying moths of the subfamilies Zygaeninae and Arctiinae.[2][3] It was thought to be related to the genus Tosena but is differentiated by the exposed tympanum and lacks spines on the sides of the pronotum[4] and now in a separate tribe.
| Gaeana | |
|---|---|
| |
| Gaeana maculata | |
Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Hemiptera |
| Suborder: | Auchenorrhyncha |
| Family: | Cicadidae |
| Tribe: | Gaeanini |
| Genus: | Gaeana Amyot & Serville, 1843 |
| Type species | |
| Cicada maculata Drury, 1773 | |
| Synonyms | |
|
Gaena, Geaena (misspelling) | |
Some species like G. maculata have been found to show a great deal of patterning variability across geography.[5]
Species
Species included in the genus have varied over time. A molecular phylogeny study in 2025 retains only three species within the genus:[5]
- Gaeana atkinsoni Distant, 1892
- Gaeana maculata (Drury, 1773) - type species - with several former species synonymized - G. consors, G. hainanensis, G. cheni and G. nigra
- Gaeana chinensis Kato, 1940