The Sensational Beauty of Lightning Bugs

Have you noticed the bountiful population of this years lightning bugs? For many, lightning bugs or otherwise known as 'fireflies' are a distinct memory of our childhoods. Just as dusk set in the parade of lightning bugs would rise from the grass, one or two at first and then the whole sky would fill with fireflies. Do you remember running around the yard catching them in your hands or collecting them in glass jars? 

Lightning bugs are members of a particular family of the Beetle. Thus, they are truly a beetle, and not in the fly family as their common name "Firefly" would suggest.  They produce light via a chemical reaction in their bodies. While scientists can not determine how this fascinating bug can turn their lights on and off, there is strong evidence that it has a lot to do with the oxygen supply in their bodies. When a lightning bug flashes they are trying to attract mates and are male. The females usually perch on vegetation near the ground and wait to see the males flashing.  Interestingly enough, so that a male bug doesn't attract a firefly of a different species, each bug of a particular family has its own special flash pattern. 

Lightning bug larvae live on the ground, under bark and in moist, swampy places. They eat earthworms, snails and slugs and other organic matter.




Did you know that there are also "Glow-Worms"? They are the larva of a two-winged insect. They are similar to lightning bugs as they produce a similar chemical reaction in their bodies, producing a bio-luminescence effect. Unlike the lightning bug, the Glow-Worm uses its glow to invite insects to dinner. Insects fly towards the glow and ultimately regret the invitation as they get stuck in the sticky lines that the glow-worm makes, similar to a spider web.  

Scientists believe that lightning bugs may have have gotten an early start this year due to higher temperatures in April, however, what is the cause of the increase of this fabulous light display? There are theories that fewer people are using pesticides and chemicals in their lawns. Or, is it the fact that we had such a rainy season last year? Whatever the reason, take a moment and capture this mystical beauty in the night, pull up your favorite comfortable chair and recapture some memories or start some new ones!