About Neotibicen similaris (Smith & Grossbeck, 1907)
Neotibicen similaris is a species of annual cicada belonging to the genus Neotibicen, and it is native to the southeastern United States. Originally, N. similaris was treated as a single distinct species within Neotibicen. In 2007, Marshall and Hill described an apparent new subspecies of N. similaris that is native to the Apalachicola region spanning Florida, Georgia, and Alabama. The originally described species is now classified as the nominate subspecies N. similaris similaris, while the newly described variant is classified as the subspecies N. similaris apalachicola. The two subspecies are similar in appearance. The most reliable way to distinguish them is the unique mating call of male N. similaris apalachicola. Even though their mating calls are clearly distinct, the two subspecies are known to hybridize in overlapping ranges, producing hybrid songs that combine features of both subspecies' calls.
