Have you ever seen a firefly?
By Bruce Marlin - Own work http://www.cirrusimage.com/beetle_firefly_Photuris_lucicrescens.htm, CC BY-SA 2.5, Link
They seem innocent enough, these brown and tan striped, soft-bodied winged beetles. The Lampyridae is commonly referred to as a firefly or lightning bug. These winged beetles have a bioluminescent glow that attract mates or prey. Their bright little light is a 'cold light' in that it doesn't produce any heat, but is a chemical reaction from the lower abdomen and can be seen as yellow, green or pale red. Tiny antennae on top of their semi-circle heads. I love the heart shape of their tiny feet. But they are a rather unassuming sort of bug. Until the twilight hour. That is when this little creature puts on a spectacular show.
What a magical experience..."as if the stars have come to settle in the forest." These synchronous fireflies all start together and flash together and then stop only to start all over again. And it is mainly about getting lucky! They flash each other and hook up. How romantic!
I have only seen fireflies a few times in my life but it truly is mesmerizing. Have you seen these lightning bugs? Do you remember trapping them in jars and watching them all night long?
oh that is so cool! We get fireflies in our backyard in the middle of summer ... it needs to be warm enough for them to come out. But it is so fun to watch them. My girls have loved to catch them in jars ... they are actually slow moving and easy to catch (poor things!)
ReplyDeleteWe don't have fireflies where I live. The first time I saw one was when we were on a cycling trip in Ontario. My friends and I each thought we were seeing things after a long day on the bikes. It wasn't until one of us said "did you see that?!" that we realized what they were. Pretty cool!
ReplyDeleteI'd love to see them - none here in Britain that I know of. Will have to do this challenge!
ReplyDeleteI grew up in Northeastern Ohio, where "lightning bugs," as we called them, were a summertime constant! I loved them! We kids would go out at twilight and stay out for as long as our moms would let us, playing and watching and catching the little creatures. They would land on your hands and arms for a spell and flash off and on and then take off again (they had romantic business to attend to, after all!). I captured them in jars sometimes but always let them go...it didn't seem right to keep them. They were too cool out flying around. :)
ReplyDeleteThank you so much for the wonderful memory, Erin. Fireflies are the sweetest little beetles around.
Oh, I adore fireflies. And, I do remember summer evenings outside, trapping them in jars (to be released the next morning). Even as an adult, I'm ticked when I catch glimpses of them from my back porch. I grin and grin. I've already got an inkling of an idea for this challenge. Fun!
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