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📌 The Question:
The organisms “Cicada, Froghopper and Pond skater” are:

(a) Birds
(b) Fish
(c) Insects
(d) Reptiles

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✅ Correct Answer: (c) Insects

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🔍 Classroom Explanation:

• Cicada 🦗
  Cicadas belong to the superfamily Cicadoidea under the order Hemiptera.
  They are well known for:
  • Long life cycles (some species: 13 or 17 years underground)
  • Loud mating calls
  • Clear membranous wings
• Froghopper (Spittlebug)
  Froghoppers belong to the superfamily Cercopoidea (Hemiptera).
  Key traits:
  • Exceptional jumping ability
  • Nymphs produce frothy “spittle” for protection
  • Plant sap feeders
• Pond skater (Water strider)
  Pond skaters are insects under family Gerridae (Hemiptera).
  They:
  • Walk on water using surface tension
  • Are predatory/scavenging insects
  • Are classic examples of biomechanical adaptation

👉 All three organisms are insects, specifically under the order Hemiptera (true bugs).

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🧠 Curiosity Raiser:
How can pond skaters walk on water without sinking?
👉 Their legs are covered with water-repellent micro-hairs, maximizing surface tension.

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📚 Enrich Notes (Prelims Edge):

• Hemiptera = piercing–sucking mouthparts
• Froghoppers hold the record for highest jump relative to body size
• Cicadas are ecological indicators of soil and forest health

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🕊️ IAS Monk Whisper:
“Evolution whispers its genius through insects — tiny bodies, mighty innovations.”