THE CIGALE LEAVES ITS BURROW The first Cigales appear about the summer solstice.

Along the beaten paths, calcined by the sun, hardened by the passage of frequent feet, we see little circular orifices almost large enough to admit the thumb.
These are the holes by which the larvae of the Cigale have come up from the depths to undergo metamorphosis.

We see them more or less everywhere, except in fields where the soil has been disturbed by ploughing.

Their usual position is in the driest and hottest situations, especially by the sides of roads or the borders of footpaths.

Powerfully equipped for the purpose, able at need to pierce the turf or sun-dried clay, the larva, upon leaving the earth, seems to prefer the hardest spots.
A garden alley, converted into a little Arabia Petraea by reflection from a wall facing the south, abounds in such holes.