Where have all the fireflies gone?
Recently, an anonymous visitor posted the question, "Why haven't I seen any fireflies over the last few summers?" That got me thinking, and I realized that I haven't seen many fireflies, either. (You don't usually see fireflies in Minnesota until late June or early July, but I don't remember seeing any last year or the year before.) So what's the skinny?
Firefly: Have you seen any of these guys lately? (Photo courtesy Aricee)
I thought about it a little bit.
Like many other insects', fireflies' life cycle includes egg, larval, and adult stages. Adults lay eggs on or just under the soil. Because they eat critters like worms, slugs, and snails, most larvae are found in rotting wood or leaf litter or on the edges of streams and ponds. Adults tend to favor the same habitats as the larvae, but we know a lot less about adult habits. Their mouths suggest that they eat other bugs, and scientists know that some fireflies eat other fireflies, but it's likely that they eat plant nectar and possibly other foods, too. You're likely to see adult fireflies over lawns and meadows and at the edges of woods or streams.
Firefly_larva: Crazy, huh? I know I've never seen these guys around! I'd have made a point of looking them up! (Photo courtesy Myriorama)
Courtesy Myriorama
My backyard seems like it would be firefly heaven, and yet I'm not seeing them. What other factors could be at play?
I thought of three. And then I found a fourth possibility on this cool website. (Maybe you can think of others?)
- Many areas have stepped up their mosquito control efforts due to concerns about West Nile virus. Is it possible that this has somehow impacted firefly populations? (I think this is an unlikely explanation, because why would we notice a reduction in fireflies but not other insects? And further, there certainly seem to be plenty of mosquitoes!)
- Our temperatures have been wacky. Maybe fireflies require a specific temperature range to hatch, or to change from their larval stage to their pupal stage? Are we exceeding that comfort zone, or not staying in the proper range long enough?
- Lack of habitat is always a possibility. Maybe they aren't finding enough to eat or the right places to lay their eggs?
- Since fireflies communicate with blinking light, perhaps they prefer to inhabit areas away from city centers with all the ambient light that goes along with them? (I think this is unlikely, too, since I've seen fireflies in the city before.)
Or maybe I'm just not looking in the right places at the right times. (Here are a few reported sightings from Minnesota…)
I'm going to do some investigating, talking to some folks at the Warner Nature Center and the University of Minnesota's Entomology Department. I'll post answers as I get them.
But I want to hear from you: have you seen fireflies? Where? Describe the place you saw them. What date? And what time of day?
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If you're interested, here are more firefly resources. Or visit the Project Firefly discussion board, which also has a long list of links.
in Malaysia, pteroptyx tener (synchronous fireflies) species stay on one particular vegetation species, sonneratia caseolaris... do fireflies really have favourite trees?what do you think?
Anyone visiting Malaysia should definitely check out the firefly boat tours on the Selangor River. All along the river's edge, trees were glowing from huge swarms of fireflies occupying them. I've alway enjoyed watching fireflies, but I''ve never seen anything like this. Magical! A truly unique tourist attraction.
Liza:
Just wanted you to know here in South Louisiana we have also seen a huge decline in Fire Flies or as we call them Lightning Bugs. However, for the first time in several years I saw one this evening. I am making a cottage garden in the front of our home so I hope to give them plenty of opportunity to grow.I would love to see them come back in full force. Thanks for the website.
We've been visiting in Rochester for about a month now, and we've seen quite a few fireflies, but only on warm calm evenings. On our way out here in our RV from Oregon, we also saw quite a few in South Dakota.
Tonight I saw a bunch, and for the first time I saw some glowing a firey red color instead of the yellowish color we usually see. Would that be a totally different species than the yellow glowing fireflies, or does one gender glow a different color than the other?
Liza, you'll be glad to know that fireflies are well and doing well in Cape Girardeau, MO. They began appearing in early May this year, and are still going strong. They're best viewed here from a half hour after sunset until about 10 p.m.
We reside in a fairly well-to-do neighborhood just north of town. Some of the lawns are so well-manicured that I don't even want to think about the herbicides, pesticides, or anything else they might have thrown into the ground. And the neighborhood is regularly sprayed for mosquitoes. So I credit our across-the-street neighbors for the presence of fireflies in our area. They have taken a low-key approach toward maintaining the area where their back yard meets a creek. They haven't allowed the area to become a landscape dump, nor is it cluttered with rotten limbs and overgrown weeds. But it looks to be harmonious with nature.
yea i too want to know what has happened to the fireflies, i think it may have to do with weather, which is one of your hypothesis's. well i hope i see some, the last memory i have is about 3 years ago and i saw them.
They are all over the place in northern Illinois.
I was raised in Dekalb county Georgia and my cgildhood memories of summer are waiting for night time to see the fireflies light up the yard.My brothers may have put them in mason jars, but I did not believe in harming lighting bugs! I now live in North Charleston , South Carolina. I don't see fireflies around here at night. My boys can't experience the wonder of lighting bugs. Why aew there no lighting bugs in South Carolina?
zthe photo of the fire fly larva was extrordinary! I have never seen such a thing.Even in my romps in the woods with my oldest son looking for any thing out of the ordinary. Wgich we did n sevral occaisions.I missed the ability to go bug hunting in the woods with youngest son brcause when he was at the age of loving indects and lizards,I was confined to a whel chair.
I have enjoyed this website. And I look forwaed to learning more about bugs and such.I wish this site could have been aroundthe years my oldest son was bug hunting. My wheel chair may keep me from hunting, but not from learning.
Thankd, carol.
Tom Anderson, at the Warner Nature Center, wrote me back. Here's what he had to say:
Hi Liza,
My mosquito control district contact has not contacted me so I thought I should send you some other thoughts. I can get back to you if I hear anything different.
- Adult fireflies typically don't come out until early to mid-July, so we shouldn't be seeing many right now anyway.
- Mosquito control might be having a selective effect on fireflies, as they live in moist places and are predators (hence, more likely to get larger quantities of pesticides in them due to bioaccumulation). Also, if mosquito control has included draining and drying out moist places, the fireflies' food source will become more scarce (see the next point).
- Most likely, it has to do with the weather. If a summer is dry at the a critical firefly period it can impact their nourishment. Fireflies eat primarily slugs. Slugs need to be in moist places or they dry out. When the weather gets dry, slugs either die or hunker down in inaccesible moist spots, limiting the ability of the fireflies to find them.
cheers,
Tom
And shortly after I heard from Tom, he heard from a representative from Mosquito Control. Here's what they had to say:
"You are correct that the growth regular (methoprene) used for mosquito control is specific to Diptera. We place methoprene in larval mosquito breeding sites which means that fireflies should not contact it. Firefly larvae develop in damp leaf litter well away from the aquatic habitats where mosquitoes breed.
Bti (Bacillus thuringiensis israelensis) is even more specific to mosquitoes than methoprene. It also is applied only to larval mosquito breeding sites.
The pyrethroids applied by MMCD to control adult mosquitoes could potentially impact other insects that are directly exposed to the spray. Ultra low volume fogging at night is the only adulticide application made when fireflies are active. The pyrethroids (resmethrin and sumithrin) applied as ULV fog break down very rapidly meaning that they kill mosquitoes that encounter the fog and then disintegrate. Neither has any residual activity. ULV fogging occurs rarely enough that much of the area within the seven-county District is not treated which means that the vast majority of the firefly population never encounters pyrethroids.
Much of the decline in firefly abundance seems to be tied to a reduction in habitat where firefly larvae can develop, reduction apparently due primarily to urban development. Fireflies were moderately abundant in Roseville when I moved there in 1998. They have since decreased to almost not being visible. Mosquito control in Roseville has not changed much since 1998.
Please feel free to contact me if you have additional questions. Please also check out our website for more information about MMCD and our programs. Much technical and educational information is available through our website."
I also contacted Ralph Holzenthal, the director of the University of Minnesota's Entomology Department insect museum. Here's what he said:
"I saw fireflies last summer and the summer before last both in by backyard in Roseville and in Roseville Central Park on the 4th of July. I think it's really a matter of being there at the right time in combination with ambient light. But I would not want to conclude that the populations are declining as I have no data. If they are, any of the factors listed by Liza could be a cause.
I think there is an opinion going around the country that fireflies are declining, but to my knowledge it is all anecdotal. I think we have to be especially wary of 'There were a lot more when I was a kid, than now!' There was probably a lot more of everything when we were kids and we had a completely different perspective on the world.
But perhaps I am wrong and they are declining. I have not looked into the literature on this, but it should be easy to find out if there is any real assessment of the populations. Of course, there are a lot of different species of fireflies."
So let's gather some data!
Starting June 25, I'll be checking my backyard and the Oakland Cemetery every night and reporting what I find. If other Buzz readers do the same, maybe we can get a more definitive answer.
Hey! We got a new dog this weekend, and the silly girl won't go outside to pee unless someone goes with her. So last night, at 11:30 or so, I was standing in the backyard and I FINALLY saw fireflies! Not very many, to be sure. And they were up high, in the branches of trees. They flashed green, not yellow. And I couldn't make out the flash pattern as I didn't know how many I was looking at. I stood, watching, for about 20 minutes. And by 11:45, they were gone.
Now that I know there are even a few out there, I'll keep looking. And at different times of the evening.
**This comment was first posted on Sunday, June 18, but moved so it could be a "reply" to the entry asking for data.
One lonely firefly spotted at about 9:30 last night. This one was flying over the sidewalk in front of the house, which seems way less hospitable to fireflies than the back yard. I went around back to see if there were others, but I didn't see any. And when I came back, the first one was gone.
I checked again late last night, hoping for a repeat of Saturday evening, but nothing.
I have noticed, however, some insects flying around during the day that look like fireflies. I wonder if we have a species that's more active in the daytime that outcompetes the nocturnal ones? Or if the ones I see during the day ARE active at night but I'm just not looking in the right places at the right times?
**This was originally posted on Tuesday, June 20, but moved so it could be a "reply" to the post asking for data submissions.
Single firefly, green flash, up high, in a wooded area, around 9:45 last night. I watched for 15 minutes, thinking there had to be others, but no luck.
Also, yesterday afternoon I caught what I think was a firefly. It was walking around on our stoop. I was going to take and post a picture, but my toddler was interested and the unfortunate bug became a casualty of her curiosity. Ooops. There are more, though...
No fireflies in our yard, front or back, last night around 10:30. But I did find another one walking on our stoop around 7.
I have to get the species identified.
I live in the Pacific NW (near Eugene Oregon) - and have NEVER seen a firefly in Oregon. I saw my first and only fireflies in McCook Nebraska 5 years ago. I was ENTRANCED!! I do remember seen one "glow worm" in my childhood. Are there fireflies in Oregon? Has any one seen them here? Why don't we have them?
Thanks!
I don't know WHY there are no fireflies in Oregon, but I do know that they only occur east of, say, mid-Kansas.
According to the Firefly Files:
"If you live in the United States, west of about the middle of Kansas, you are not apt to have the flashing type of fireflies in your area. Although some isolated sightings of luminous fireflies have been reported from time to time from regions of the western U.S., fireflies that glow are typically not found west of Kansas. The reason for this phenomenon is not known."
Hi,
I was walking outside of our house at like 11:30 PM on 44 acres here in Obrien, Oregon and my doberman was looking at something on the dark ground (the moon was behind a tree). It looked as though a piece of mirror was reflecting the moon. But, upon closer inspection...it was a small worm thing, with a giant bright green glow coming from under his neck.
I looked on here and found it was a fire fly larve. I looked all over for like 15 min. but only ONE!
They are AWE inspiring~!
Peace
9:30pm, June 25.
It rained the night of June 24 and the morning of June 25, and I found many slugs and snails in the yard on the 25th.
But I spent 20 minutes watching for fireflies, and I only saw 2. Even though the back yard is relatively free of light pollution--seriously, it's really dark out there--the sky was light. Remember, we're only a few days past the summer solstice. So maybe that has something to do with it and I should have been looking later.
As a kid growing up in Washington DC, I remember looking for fireflies at dusk. But those must have been a different species. The fireflies I'm seeing now, here in Minnesota, aren't really active (flashing) until full dark.
6/27, 10pm.
One firefly flashing. I caught another one walking up the side of the house.
And earlier, around 7:30 pm, I caught one flying around in a friend's yard. (Their house is near Crosby Farm Park and the River Road.) It wasn't flashing, though. Just flying. And it looked, to my untrained eye, like the same sort of firefly I've been finding in my yard.
6/29, 9:30pm
One firefly, green flash, over the grass between the sidewalk and the street. It didn't stick around long.
Only one lonely firefly spotted on Saturday evening (7/8), and the silly dog ate it.
None spotted since then. Maybe they know we have a firefly-eating dog? :)
Today is June 17th. I saw a firefly here in my back yard in Apple Valley MN!!!
All I can say is hurrah!!!
Journey North has a really cool firefly section on their website.
According to Journey North, fireflies ARE on the decline, due to pesticide use and loss of habitat (mowing of fields, and destruction of marshes, wetlands, bogs, and woods). They offer suggestions on how to make your yard "firefly friendly."
I'm outside of your survey area. But we had plenty of fireflies (or lightning bugs, as we call them) here last year. And I saw the first one this year outside my apartment about a week or so ago.
If they depend on rain, then I'm expecting a bumper crop this summer!
-- Gene (East Lansing, Michigan)
A while back the museum hosted an exhibition on bioluminescence called Glow: Living Lights. As part of my learning about the content for that exhibition, I came across a number of firefly resources on the web including, The Firefly Files and this page from THE Ohio State university.
The most common reason I found for there not being many fireflies in the city is light pollution. Since they communicate with light, being in a bright area is not a good thing for them. But, it's probably a combination of all the factors Liza mentions. And its too bad, because of all the bugs, the firefly has got to be one of the coolest.
Fireflies glow due to bioluminescence. Bioluminescence is the production and emission of light by a living organism. The light generated is the result of a chemical reaction in which chemical energy is converted to light.
You can buy bioluminescent single-celled algae known as dinoflagellates from a company called Sunny Side Sea Farms. I used to have a bunch of bags of these things, and they were really cool. Here's how their website describes them (their dinoflagellates are Pyrocystis fusiformis and they call them "Lights from the Sea"):
These tiny plants live in the ocean. They are unicellular algae, which look like delicate, beautiful, golden eyes, and produce oxygen and sugars like all plants do. In the dark, Lights From The Sea produce glowing blue light. Pyrocystis sets its bioluminescence by a biological clock (just like our sleep patterns). At sunset the cells produce the chemicals that cause a luciferin-luciferase reaction. You can see the general shape of the plant through a magnifying glass. You do not need to feed them since they use the light in your room to photosynthesize producing their own oxygen and food. Lights From The Sea can last several weeks to months. You must treat them as you would a delicate plant or a bouquet of flowers. They need light but prefer to remain between 50 and 70 degrees Fahrenheit.
Hello, I have happened on this blog by accident. I was looking for a reason why there are almost no mosquitoes and actually almost no flying bugs of any kind around here. I lived am currently in northern Indiana but I have just returned here from Colorado. It was always very dry and windy and I always made comments to people it was very nice not to have so many bugs especially mosquitoes. Now I am back here for a short stay and repairing my motor home and I can work on it and leave the door open and only have an occasional Junebug to deal with. Where are all the bugs? I am sitting in front of a well-lit window that should be attracting moths, mosquitoes and all kinds of bugs and yet I see none. My wife and I both got congested at the same time and now the bug population seems to be even lower. I believe they are spraying at night from plans or something with out our knowledge. It is the only thing that makes sense. Anyway this is my opinion. I wonder what this stuff is doing to us?
I also happened by here on accident. My sons just caught a big jar full of lightning bugs and we were wondering what they eat. My 6 year old wants to know how they can eat slugs and things like that when they are bigger than the bugs are. Any good answers for us? We seem to have plenty of fireflies here in SW Missouri...
Firefly larvae can detect a snail or slug slime trail, and follow it to the prey. After locating their future meals, some kinds of fireflies inject an anesthetic-type substance through hollow ducts in the their mandibles into the slug, snail, or worm in order to immobilize and eventually digest it. Several larvae have also been seen attacking large prey, such as large earthworms. Other observations suggest larvae sometimes scavenge dead snails, worms and similar organic matter.
Adult fireflies also have mouth parts suggestive of predation (long sickle-shaped mandibles). Although it is widely known that fireflies of a few species mimic the mates of other species in order to attract and devour them, observations of adults feeding on other prey are practically non-existent. Scientists think that adults might eat plant nectar in order to sustain their energy requirements in the adult stage, which can last several months or longer.
This site has cool pictures of a firefly larva eating a snail.
Last summer we noticed a few nights with fireflies in our backyard, just north of Houston Texas. About 5 years ago we stopped using pesticides and opted for natural sources to combat unwanted bugs. But we would love to provide a more favorable habitat for our firefly friends.
Does anyone know if we created some compost-like pile of wet leaves and rotting wood to attract slugs, would this increase our chances of seeing more fireflies?
I guess I am really asking is, What is the most favored food source for fireflies and how should we go about creating it in our back yard?
Thank
NostalgiaHunter
The Firefly Files have some tips for making your yard more firefly-friendly:
- Don't use chemicals on your lawn. If you must, use less.
- Reduce the ambient light on your property. It interferes with their communication and ability to tell time (which is important since some species are only active during certain hours of the evening).
- Low overhanging trees, tall grass, and other vegetation will provide cool spots for fireflies to rest during the day. (Unfortunately, these are also good spots for mosquitoes to rest, so make sure you're emptying all standing water if you decide to do this.)
This page has tips for ridding your garden of slugs. Seems like if you turned a few of these tips on their heads, you might see populations of firefly prey increase.
Sounds like you've already taken some of these steps. No guarantees, of course, but they should help bring fireflies to your yard.
Well, I live in Saint Paul right next to a big field bordered with some small woods (right across the street from the Saint Paul Cathedral). I haven't seen even a single firefly.
I grew up in Nashville, TN and can remember seeing hundreds in my front yard as the sunset. I can't say I have ever see numbers like that up here in Minnesota, but my fond memories of childhood might be distorting my scientific observations.
Here's a fun experiment to do if you live in a place with lots of fireflies.
- Find a clean jar or plastic container with a lid. Get an adult to help you punch air holes in the lid.
- Gently catch fireflies and put them in the container.
- Observe your captives. Count the number of flashes, how long they last, and the time between flashes. Continue for 5 minutes. Record your data.
- Return to your capture site and gently release your fireflies. Wait one hour, and return to the same site. Catch some more fireflies and repeat your observations.
If you notice a different flashing sequence, you've probably caught a different species.
And here's a cool project based on John Schimmel's memories of firefly experiences as a kid:
"Fireflies are networked nightlights for a local environment, the jars can be placed in different bedrooms or other spots around a home so people can communicate with one another through simply tapping on the jars. For example, if you tap the jar in your bedroom you will pulse the colored fireflies associated with that jar. The neighboring jars in your home will receive and pulse your taps, record them and then play them back. The neighboring jars can respond with their own tapping and broadcast themselves to the nightlights in the home.
While a person is tapping the jar, they are in a broadcast mode where they get approximately 4 seconds of tap time and the other jars are in listening mode, again, for approximately 4 seconds *. After the 4 seconds is up there all the jars play back the recorded taps they have received. It's a firefly jam session.Fireflies work using radio frequency (RF) which broadcasts only when a jar is being tapped. The RF works nice in a home because it does not need to rely on an existing network infrastructure, a jar simply sends as far as it can for each tap, usually 400 feet, and any jar in that radius will most likely receive the message.
The nightlights work well even without their friends, as a standalone, the jar has enough character to create a presence that does not need to react or broadcast to others and can simple be a piece of a room."
"Firefly" nightlights: (Photo courtesy John Schimmel)
Check out the step-by-step instructions for making this great set of networked nightlights.
No fireflies in your yard? Catch some virtual ones.
The firefly's flame
Is something for which science has no name.
I can think of nothing eerier
Than flying around with an unidentified glow on a person's posterior.
--Ogden Nash
I actually found this site because I was trying to figure out why we have more lightning bugs (fire-flys) this year than ever before. I'm just north of Atlanta, GA and right now, my back yard looks like Las Vegas. There are literally thousands of them out there flashing away. Never seen anything like this. What's interesting is that it's been very dry here. In fact, my little creek has just about dried up, but there are more lighting bugs than ever!
I'm in the city of Atlanta and found this site for the same reason - I've lived in my home for 20 years and I've never seen as many fire-flys as I saw two nights ago - I got home late last night and did not sit on the deck. We've had a very dry spring and I do occasionally spray with Yard Guard to control the mosquitoes - have used it two or three times this year. The mosquitoe population also seems to be down, or at least late appearing, but the dry weather would help explain that. Someone told me recently (a teacher) that fire-flys eat mosquitoes, which I was also trying to find information on. Any thoughts???
I've done a lot of research lately about fireflies, and I haven't come across a single reference to them eating mosquitoes. (Do you have bats or dragonflies? They're CHAMPION eaters of mosquitoes.) Now, we know that some fireflies are predators, and we haven't observed many adult fireflies feeding, so I suppose it's possible. But I don't think it's likely.
I don't know much about fireflies, Liza, but here are a couple things maybe you could check out:
1] You could temporarily catch some fireflies and keep them in an environment with or without mosquitoes and see if the mosquitoes are eaten!
2] Find several places where fireflies live and see if they are also places frequented by mosquitoes. This would clue you in to a possible relationship between the two insects.
3] Adopt a firefly and name it Josephine. Keep Josephine with a misquito and see if the mosquito is devoured.
Good luck - Jimmy
Jimmy, these are great suggestions. It's a good science fair project!
However, I'm the writer of the original post, and I haven't seen even ONE firefly in the last few years. So I'm not really in a position to experiment.
But maybe some of our posters from Michigan or Georgia or Missouri, where they seem to have lots of fireflies, can report back...
One other thing: I think that you're very likely to find mosquitoes and fireflies in the same areas. Both like to rest in vegetation during the day, and both need damp environments during their early stages. But that doesn't mean that one eats the other. After all, bears and wolves share the same environment and are both predators, but they don't eat each other, right?
In 2001, 2002 and 2003 there were lots of fireflies near us - we live near the river outside of Philadelphia. then last year there seemed to be less and this year hardly any so far. In fact, so few that I googled to see if I could find out the reason for such a lack of abundance b/c in 2001 there were so many we were bowled over. Must be a combination of factors, including weather glitches. I was thinking that the birds may be more abundant and eating them all.
Hmmmm...this is an interesting theory.
But if birds are eating the fireflies, they must be eating them during the day. Most birds don't feed overnight, when fireflies are most active.
Hi
I´m from a far country.
I´m really liking to read your news and reports about fireflies.
Keep on the good work and enjoy it, they are truly amazing!
Regards,
L.
I live in a northwestern suburb of Philadelphia and usually see lightning bugs early to mid-June, this year is no exception.
My backyard has been aglow these past few weeks. I have lived in the same town most of my 60 years and, though the lightning bug population has gone up and down, it seems to be holding its own.
I go organic all the way; I think that that makes a difference; my neighbor's yard, non-organic, doesn't seem to sparkle as much as mine.
I really appreciate the photo of the larva; I had a discussion about lightning bug larvae with my bug expert organic farmer son about their appearance, seems he was correct as usual.
I came across this site while looking for an answer to the following question.
I live in Buffalo, New York, but grew up in Southern Indiana where I spent many a summer night catching lightning bugs and putting them in mayo jars. Ever since I have lived in Buffalo I have wondered why are there no lightning bugs here?
Thank you.
Greetings-
I just want to share that there IS hope of a growing, glowing population again.
We have a family cabin in Wisc. that's not far from the state line into Minnesota. The cabin is next to a marsh on the edge of a lake. It's in a very rural area, so there's virtually no light polution. We stay around the same time every year, so what I witnessed this year made me very happy.
Our first few years out of the last 12 we saw fireflys abound, then they all but vanished. This past year, there was a population explosion! On a starry night, you could hardly tell where the horizon was, there were sparkling lights from ground to sky. This was the largest amount of firefly's I had ever seen. I spent my childhood Summers living on a lake in Minnesota (rather, IN the lake from sun up to sun down), so I have had my share of fireflys in my life. I had spent the last few years lamenting over the loss of these amazing insects, so what I saw a few weeks ago made my heart sing with delight. All of the people in our group went out onto the lake the first night and silently watched for at least half an hour, they were so abundent and amazing.
I hope many of you get to witness this kind of delight this Summer.
trix
I found your site after wanting to research fireflies....last night we were in Lexington Ohio (Mid Ohio) and saw miles and miles of fields a glow with the beautiful twinkle of them!!! It was AMAZING!!! I have never seen anything like the shining display.... better than ANY Fireworks we will see this 4th of July!!!
I hope everyone who loves these little creatures can experience this show someday!!!
Enjoy your summer!!
Firefly sitings. Reasonable number of fireflies in the woods near my townhouse in Eagan July 2001, 2002. Have since moved to house in Apple Valley. I live across from a park and have a fairly "wild" backyard with tall grass but alas not much in the way of low-hanging tree branches - have seen small number of fireflies July 2003, 2004, 2005. So far this year (2006) - just one firefly in my backyard or along the side of my porch. But, I am also often not able to sit outside and observe during the critical hours of the night.
I did see rather more fireflies at my parent's house in Rochester. They live in a very woodsy neighborhood with an abundance of low-hanging tree branches. I distinctly remember a large number of fireflies on July 4th, 2003 - the last holiday I was in Rochester. We were lighting sparklers in the driveway and the fireflies kept flying up to the sparklers, perhaps trying to mate with them.
However, none of the Minnesota sitings compare with the fireflies I remember as a child on vacation in Massachusetts and upstate New York (this would have been the 1970s). I remember quite a light display in a meadow environment (with water present) on these occasions. Even that was probably not at the level my mom remembers (during her Massachusetts childhood in the 1950s) when she could regularly fill a mason jar with the critters simply by running around the yard scooping up fireflies.
July 13 firefly hunt at Maplewood Nature Center for kids ages 3 to 8. Registration deadline is today, July 6. Cost is $3 per child. Time is 8:30 to 10 pm. Sorry for this late notice. It was in this mornings paper. Call 651-249-2170. The center is at 2659 E. Seventh St. Adult needs to accompany kids.
Where can I purchase fireflies or firefly larva? My children have never seen them before. If anyone knows where or how I can purchase them that would be wonderful Thanks, Dan
I just found this amazing Washington Post article (which made me incredibly homesick and nostalgic). Buried in there is the answer to your question:
"You can't buy fireflies the way you can acquire, say, ladybugs."
A quick internet search seems to back that statement up: I found no fireflies being offered for sale. Perhaps because they don't have any commercial applications?
Terry Lynch, of Project Firefly, suggests that you can raise fireflies at home, but you have to catch them first. And that's the problem for a lot of us...
I stand corrected! Well, maybe... (Yahoo! Answers isn't the most reliable source of information.)
The post says to try godofinsects.com: you can get 12 live fireflies for $40 during June and July. At more than $3.30 per firefly, they better put on a good show!
I also found a post on "The Nature of Our Garden" (fireflies) that reads:
"I purchased a children's book (junior high level) in a thrift store which is very interesting: Fireflies in Nature and the Laboratory by Lynn & Gray Poole, 1965, Thomas Y. Crowell Co, NY. it contains information on collecting and selling fireflies to The Johns Hopkins University. Other companies that buy them are: Sigma Chemical Co., Worthington Biochemical Co and Schwartz Bio-Research Co. 'Scientists need fireflies so they can learn what makes them light up. This will help explain how living things store and use energy. Also, the firefly's lighting system can be used by biochemists in many kinds of important research.' ($$$$) Personally I think these scientists should learn to raise the insects they need for their "important research" themselves and not steal them from Mother Nature."
We saw several fireflies last night in our backyard in Minnetonka, MN. The surprising thing is that we have lived in this house for 16 years, and this is the first time I have noticed them. My son says he has seen them somewhat regularly (of course, he "sleeps out" on the screened porch almost every night during the summer). We live in a heavily wooded area near a fresh water pond (stream fed). The fireflies I saw were in the woods, but not far from the lawn clearing. It was wonderful and magical.
I have seen fireflies this summer in my backyard near bushes july 14,2006 at night
Just last night my mom and I were sitting outside and we saw a firefly, that brought up the question were do they go. We realized we only see them in the summer or just 2 months, were we live we get them every year but not all through the years. Does anyone know where they go after the few months we get them?
Thank you,
The Daughter
Adult fireflies live only two weeks or so--just long enough to mate, really. After mating, females lay eggs in the soil, and the larvae hatch soon after. Those crazy-looking creatures are probably out in your yard all summer.
I live in Northeast Indiana (Ft wayne). I can remember in the 60's chasing fireflies in the evening as child. There were always multitudes of magical green luminescent twinkling lights every summer evening throughout the neighborhood. They were everywhere.
Once, about 15 years ago, I was camping at a state park and we watched as it seemed like a million fire flies were blinking on and off in unison. What a sight!
This evening (8-20-06), a warm summer night, I thought that I'd go outside and have a drink on the patio. I sat there for a while and slowly realized that weren't any fireflies at all. Thinking back, I don't recall any last year either. Not to mention, there have been far fewer butterflies too. Very depressing and disturbing.
Hi
I guess it´s too late to observe firefly adult display now.
Only some ocasional ones ( out of season) still do it.
I don´t know which species live there, only some species like photinus, phryxotryx... , I don´t live in America and I´m not from there, but I usually read firefly american reports, in late May, June and July. Am I wrong? So most adults, on August already, laid eggs, died and completed their life cycle.
On this time it´s possible to observe firefly larvae glowing at night, on wet conditions, though.
You just need to know, where to search and to be patient in detecting it. Then when you see their glow, you´ll feel more confortable.
Good luck! :)
Here in Winston- Salem, North Carolina I see fire flies what seems like all sumer and me and my friends catch them all the time. It seems like they swarm our back-yard because you can easily catch 10 after about five minutes. I think that fireflies are amazing!
Hi
And you have seen them ( firefly adults) in this time of the year?
I thought it would only be possible to see larvae.
I agree with you they are truly astonishing!
My wife and I are planning a cross-country trip with our travel trailer in the near future and are much interested in seeing fireflies in "action". We will be passing through several midwestern states are were wondering where and what time of the season would they be most plentiful to observe. Thank You kindly for any information.
I am extremely interested in any research, or possibility of research, into firefly performance under various electromagnetic fields. Does the light pulse frequency change, or the colour, or the ability to light up?
This would be an interesting comparison with animal studies showing enzyme stimulation for the production of nitric oxide, which is part of the firely mechanism, and may have a bearing also on honeybee decline in certain areas.
http://www.hese-project.org/hese-uk/en/issues/nature.php?id=bees
You can also contact me direct via the above website.
yea thats all nice what you guys are saying. but you never answer THE IMPORTANT QUESTION:
where Can We Buy/Purchase Fireflies??
Bees are also disappearing
Scientists are very worried
It could be due to the proliferation of microwave radiaiton from the 1000's of cell phone towers now covering the whole country.
See the web site for research articles
Hmmmm.
Yes, bee populations are crashing.
Marla Spivak, entomologist and bee/Varroa mite researcher, was our featured "Scientist on the Spot" in July and August of 2005. Read about her research, and check out the Q&A feature.
Thor posted "To bee or not to bee," about the more general causes of the honeybee decline, on March 2, 2007.
I read your post, and looked at the cited web site, but I'm not convinced microwave radiation from cell phone towers is the culprit. While it's true that electromagnetic radiation from microwaves, radar, television, etc, has increased immensely since the 1940s, the amount of electromagnetic radiation from man-made sources is still tiny, tiny, tiny compared to the amount of natural electromagnetic radiation we're exposed to.
Ionizing radiation is the dangerous kind; it's powerful enough to knock electrons loose from atoms (including those in DNA) as it passes through our bodies. Ultraviolet light is ionizing radiation; too much exposure can cause skin cancer. X rays and gamma rays are also ionizing; too many X ray exams can cause organ cancers. A full 80% of the ionizing radiation we're exposed to comes from natural sources (especially radon). Almost all the rest of our ionizing radiation exposure comes from medical imaging. Microwaves, radio waves, and infrared and visible light--non-ionizing radiation--cannot cause cellular damage.
But I'm not a scientist. And I wondered if perhaps electromagnetic radiation might influence insects differently than it does people. So I forwarded your post to Marla Spivak, at the University of Minnesota, and asked her to weigh in. Her reply?
"Hi Liza,
There are so many problems affecting bees (diseases, mites, pollination contracts and stress of moving bees long distances, drought, pesticides) that electromagnetic fields seem to be way down on the list. I have no data and no of no data, but my guess is that electromag is NOT the cause of this years loss of honey bees. See our web site: on the home page I have posted an article.Best, Marla"
Now the internet is a-Buzz with bee disappearance theories. It's the rapture! No, it's the Earth's magnetic field! No, it's Keven Federline! (That's my favorite one...)
The upshot? No one knows yet what's causing Colony Collapse Disorder. But a lot of bee researchers are trying to figure it out.
I've noticed that there are more fireflies in west america then here in minnesota.
Really? Where? All the sources I could find said that flashing fireflies really live only east of central Kansas.
i am srilankan univercity student. now i am doing research about fireflies i wish to shair my data with you please give me oppotunity and reply me
Hi..
i'm doing a research on fireflies in Malaysia..hope we can share many things about fireflies.
When I moved from N.C./Virginia to Washington State and later California, I asked why no fireflies.
Answer: they reproduce in the South, and need the humid environment of the Southeast during the summer and fall; they can't reproduce in desert conditions in the Southwest.
Once, in North Carolina, as a kid, I got to see a firefly larva, a "glowworm" (and my dad, who grew up in Georgia and saw them there and places deeper South all the time when he was a kid, sang us "Glow Little Glow-Worm" to help me remember it). It was a pale yellow-green glowing white caterpillar, basically, that turned up underneath something like a board in the yard.
Possibly their range has moved northward since the 1940s, as things have warmed up.
But they don't have any breeding populations in places where they can't reproduce in warm humid summertime conditions. No West Coast fireflies.
were is the best recsearch material on firefly?
My neighbor and I spotted a few fireflies late last night in Coon Rapids, at the edge of a wooded area. I don't recall ever seeing them this early in the year, and wonder if the very warm weather we've had encouraged them to come out.
I grew up in Kansas, and spent many summer evenings at my grandparents house in Eastern Kansas catching fireflies in the evening, and of course letting them go in the morning. The statement that they aren't found West of central Kansas isn't correct. I live (or did anyway) in Greensburg and worked in Dodge City, and some evenings by the time I got to work, the front of my car, and the windshield would be glowing from running into them on the drive. In particular what's called the "Ford bend" a long gradual curve to the West just north of Ford, Ks. would be aglow with them.
I live in the Wichita area now, and the other evening I went to the store in Derby, and on the way back, the ditches and fields were positively sparkling with all the fireflies. There is a small creek that runs through the area, and a couple of fallow fields that give them a perfect place to live. So far I've only seen a few in my yard in Oaklawn, but hopefully they will be showing up more frequently soon.
I like very much to read your reports.
Keep on the reporting I´m doing the same here in my country : Portugal.
I wish you a
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