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Some people call cicadas “locusts”.
有些人把蝉叫做“蝗虫”。
But this is a mistake.
但这是一个错误。
A locust is a completely different insect.
蝗虫是一种完全不同的昆虫。
Locusts can cause much harm to plants and crops.
蝗虫会对植物和农作物造成很大危害。
National Geographic suggests one reason for this mistake.
《国家地理》指出了造成这个错误的一个原因。
It says that the first European people to live in the United States remembered a Bible story about locusts.
它表示，第一批生活在美国的欧洲人记得《圣经》中关于蝗虫的故事。
The large number of cicadas caused them to think of this story!
大量的蝉使他们想到了这个故事！
In the story, God’s people were slaves in ancient Egypt.
在这个故事中，上帝的子民是古埃及的奴隶。
The Egyptians would not free them from slavery.
埃及人不愿把他们从奴役中解放出来。
So, God sent millions of locusts to the Egyptians.
因此，上帝派了数百万只蝗虫到埃及人那里。
There were so many locusts that the ground looked black.
蝗虫太多了，地面看起来很黑。
They filled the houses.
它们挤满了房子。
And they destroyed all the crops.
它们毁坏了所有的庄稼。
It is easy to understand why cicadas are some times called locusts.
很容易理解蝉有时被称为蝗虫的原因。
When they all come out of the ground at the same time there are millions of cicadas!
当它们都同时从地下出来时，就会有数百万只蝉！
They cover the trees and the ground.
它们覆盖了树木和地面。
But cicadas do not cause any harm.
但是蝉不会造成任何伤害。
Cicadas do not bite.
蝉不咬人。
They do not carry any diseases.
它们不携带任何疾病。
And they do not eat away plants.
它们也不会吃掉植物。
They are not like locusts at all.
它们一点也不像蝗虫。
So even when cicadas sing very loud, we can be happy that they are not locusts.
因此，即使蝉鸣叫得很大声，我们也可以庆幸它们不是蝗虫。
We do not have to worry.
我们不必担心。
We can sing along.
我们可以一起唱。
