Lightning bug's range is pretty wide (they can be found on every continent except Antarctica), but there are much less of them than there use to be.
As a child in the 90s, I would see so many of them flickering. But now, like many other bugs, they are dying off.
I've never seen one, though a quick online search shows that some species of firefly do exist in my small country. I guess I've just never been out in the right kind of nature at night.
I've seen them hundreds of times in movies and TV shows though, they're real common in American media.
the ones in american media tend to fly while glowing, no? i've only ever seen the quietly sit on a leaf and flash in patterns type.
American fireflies mostly glow while they are flying. The best way to catch one is to snatch it out of the air when it lights up.
Yeah I remember seeing so many of them it was like stars near the ground. These days I rarely see more than I could count on one hand at once.
The impoverished natural world being left to our children is something that often makes me sad.
this year is a huge one for these guys in my area. walking around at dusk has been an amazing light show. i feel blessed
I was into my 30's by the time I discovered fireflies were real. I was well aware there were bioluminescent creatures in the world but I thought fireflies just reflected light until I moved to the Midwest. They are an amazing sight when you've never seen them before.
They used to be indigenous where I lived. Now they are not. I suppose they cannot live on concrete, who would have thought...
Only a few years ago, I found fireflies living near me. I never knew they existed in Europe.
Government decided to level their habitat though. They're building a wildlife rescue center, ironically.
I've always called them fireflies growing up but it seems like that's dependent on where you grew up
I saw a glow-worm some years ago. I thought someone had dropped a glowstick until I took a closer look
Definitely not too common in Finland
Glad I'm not the only one raised to say lightning bugs instead of fireflies
Honestly I thought they were fictional creatures until I was about 16 and finally saw one. Never seen them again though.
Truly magical critters. Used to be at Gran's farm as a kid and catch em in your hands. Fields were just covered in em. Great memories.
Haven't been back in ages... I wonder how it's looking these days.
Maybe let that one stay a memory unless Gran's still there and should be visited, I have an inkling it's going to be disappointing
Still ought to visit Uncle & Aunt who currently reside there, but yeah news of dwindling numbers is a bummer for sure...
where do those critters live anyways? I'm pretty sure I've never seen one...
Ah I love lightning bugs! My backyard will be beautiful in a few weeks 💛
