Blueridge Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Read about them here: http://www.firefly.org/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ChrisB Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 This is interesting! I used to love chasing them as a kid. Actually, I just pulled one off DD3's hair this morning outside. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
QuirkyKapers Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I had no idea. Thanks for sharing! The kids were trying to catch some last night. I will have to go out and see if it looks like the number has gotten smaller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DianeW88 Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I miss fireflies. I grew up with them back east, but we have none here in Utah. None when we lived in Denver either. Dang altitude. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lynn Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 We've noticed the decrease of fireflies over the past few years and lady bugs. Dd and I use to catch 10 or so a day now we are lucky to find 1 or 2. So sad about that. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crafty Mathy Mom Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Didn't know this. The population seems to be about the same here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TravelingChris Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 There are so many fireflies here and when we lived in Va in the woods, they seemed to be at least as common as when I was a kid. Over here, I am amazed how prolific they are. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 So weird. There are *more* here in the city than there were when we moved here about ten years ago. I swear. The other night I was marveling at how many were buzzing around my yard. I'd never seen so many. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mama_Rana Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 FarrarWilliams, I read somewhere recently while looking into this that scientists think in our area [DC Metro] the population is back on the rise. But I don't have the reference handy to share. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Farrar Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Ooh, more and more interesting. I feel a school project coming on... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angela in ohio Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Huh. We were just talking about how many more there seem to be in the last few years. If anyone needs more, they can have some from our fields. :lol: They are everywhere. I actually had one in the bathroom this morning, crawling up the mirror. :glare: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Crafty Mathy Mom Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 Huh. We were just talking about how many more there seem to be in the last few years. If anyone needs more, they can have some from our fields. :lol: They are everywhere. I actually had one in the bathroom this morning, crawling up the mirror. :glare: This reminds me of when a firefly landed inside the toilet and couldn't get out. There was an eerie greenish glow coming out of the bowl. We fished it out and it eventually flew away. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dangermom Posted June 25, 2012 Share Posted June 25, 2012 I've never seen them; I don't think they live in central CA (dry, not marshy, and mostly cool at night). Anybody got a map of firefly habitats? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
creekland Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 We have thousands here. I love watching them as they twinkle in the trees. It looks like Christmas. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Elisabeth in IL Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I don't see as many here as I did when I was a child. Would love to see more of them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gingersmom Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I figured they were disappearing because my dog keeps trying to eat them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
2cents Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 We didn't have them but now we have a tiny colony of them near us. The Dept of Agriculture is watching the growth. My friend lives nearby and some night we plan to take the kids out there to hopefully see some when it is more established. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chicagoshannon Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I haven't seen any here in years. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BamaTanya Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I figured they were disappearing because my dog keeps trying to eat them. :lol: I have two dogs that eat everything in the backyard, so maybe that's our problem here . . . :tongue_smilie: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkateLeft Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I've never seen them; I don't think they live in central CA (dry, not marshy, and mostly cool at night). Anybody got a map of firefly habitats? They generally live east of the Mississippi. We had them in corner of our yard when we first moved to MN. My kids had never seen them before, since they'd grown up in CA. That was... wow... almost three years ago now. We haven't seen them at all the last two summers. So I believe that the population is decreasing. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fhjmom Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 We had them here in North Texas when I wa a child. I remember catching them all the time. I haven't seen a firefly around here in years. :( Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Starr Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 We had one in our bathroom last night. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparrow Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 We haven't really noticed a decrease. We have woods on 3 sides of our house and they are everywhere. If you've never seen them before, I hope someday you'll get to :001_smile:. It is truly amazing to stroll down a country road and see SO MUCH twinkling! It makes you think the possibility of fairies in your midst is not so far-fetched. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
In the Rain Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I hope my kids will always remember running around in jammies catching fireflies like I did as a kid. :001_smile: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BinahYeteirah Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 There are a lot more fireflies in my yard now than I remember growing up, but there are woods behind our house now. I guess the fireflies like that. It's amazingly beautiful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jeannie in NJ Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 I also grew up in North Texas and have great memories of fireflies as a child, Where I live now in NJ, we saw fireflies the other night for the first time in years. My dc even tho they are teens, were so excited to see them. Made me sad that we don't see fireflies more often. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rivka Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 They're everywhere here in Maryland. We even saw them when we lived right downtown, and now that we've moved to a more wooded neighborhood we see millions of them. It's so magical. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trinchick Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 (edited) Our local Audubon Society just hosted an event called "The Secret Lives of Fireflies" that DD and I went to on Saturday night. We learned some really neat things! For example, fireflies are poisonous, so most predators leave them alone. And there are some species of fireflies in which the female imitates the blinking patterns of other species in order to attract males and then eat them! Also firefly larva can live underground for 2 years, but then live only a few weeks as mature fireflies. And mature fireflies don't eat. Anyhow, there is a national project for citizen scientists to track fireflies. It's hosted by the Boston Museum of Science. You only have to commit to 10 minutes per week of counting fireflies in your yard, and then complete an online questionnaire. They're trying to determine what impacts the firefly population (location, light sources, lawn care, water sources, etc.). I think this would be a great homeschool project. Here's the link if anyone is interested: http://www.mos.org/fireflywatch Edited June 26, 2012 by trinchick fixed the link Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sparrow Posted June 26, 2012 Share Posted June 26, 2012 Our local Audubon Society just hosted an event called "The Secret Lives of Fireflies" that DD and I went to on Saturday night. We learned some really neat things! For example, fireflies are poisonous, so most predators leave them alone. And there are some species of fireflies in which the female imitates the blinking patterns of other species in order to attract males and then eat them! Also firefly larva can live underground for 2 years, but then live only a few weeks as mature fireflies. And mature fireflies don't eat. Anyhow, there is a national project for citizen scientists to track fireflies. It's hosted by the Boston Museum of Science. You only have to commit to 10 minutes per week of counting fireflies in your yard, and then complete an online questionnaire. They're trying to determine what impacts the firefly population (location, light sources, lawn care, water sources, etc.). I think this would be a great homeschool project. Here's the link if anyone is interested: www.mos.org/fireflywatch Unfortunately, we have first hand experience with the bolded. A friend tossed a firefly in our bearded dragon's habitat. His beard turned black, within a few hours, and he died, despite the vet's best efforts, 48 hours later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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