Photinus carolinus or snycronous fireflies

[csxjohn]

2 years ago was looking out over a 2 acre field here in N. E. Ohio and the fireflies were lighting as if they were strings of Christmas lights. I thought at first I was hallucinating again but no, the light show was synchronized.

My wife had read about this occurrence in one of her murder mysteries so we looked it up on Google.

Sure enough, they exist! I've done a little reading and I was lead to believe that there are only 2 places in the world that this type show can be seen, Smokey Mountain Natl Park in Tn ad somewhere in Asia.

Well, add the Cleveland Ohio area to that list. There is supposed to be only one species of firefly to do this and they aren't supposed to be found in this area.

Someone is lying to us, either other species do this or their range is further than the scientists know about.

Has anyone else seen a show like this, either in Tn. or elsewhere?

 

[MULTIZ321]

2 years ago was looking out over a 2 acre field here in N. E. Ohio and the fireflies were lighting as if they were strings of Christmas lights. I thought at first I was hallucinating again but no, the light show was synchronized.

My wife had read about this occurrence in one of her murder mysteries so we looked it up on Google.

Sure enough, they exist! I've done a little reading and I was lead to believe that there are only 2 places in the world that this type show can be seen, Smokey Mountain Natl Park in Tn ad somewhere in Asia.

Well, add the Cleveland Ohio area to that list. There is supposed to be only one species of firefly to do this and they aren't supposed to be found in this area.

Someone is lying to us, either other species do this or their range is further than the scientists know about.

Has anyone else seen a show like this, either in Tn. or elsewhere?

Hi John,

I have seen firefly light shows but not the synchronous light show you describe. However, you might have seen my previous Tug thread from about 2 years ago - 14 Fun Facts About Fireflies - there's a link in the article that discusses synchronous light shows in more detail.

Also, you probably saw my more recent Tug thread on fireflies - The Beautiful Flight Path of Fireflies . From these pics I would say the place in Asia is Japan.

Best regards,

Richard

 

[csxjohn]

Yes and no Richard, I saw the recent post, not the earlier one. Thanks for posting them again here.

It's interesting to me that when a field gets paved over they don't migrate, they just disappear.

The season is just about over down south. It hasn't started here yet.

http://www.nps.gov/grsm/naturescience/fireflies.htm

I don't know how it played out last year, we went on vaca during the mating season. I will try to get videos if I can find someone to video it that I won't have to kill to keep the place a secret

 

[Rose Pink]

I don't remember ever seeing fireflies. It's something I would like to see.

 

[Passepartout]

It's true as far as I know, that they don't exist out here in the arid West. Back in my trucking days in the East and Midwest, I remember splattering them on the windshield and had the light just glow like a glow-stick for several seconds afterwards. Never saw any displaying that I'd call synchronized though.

 

[MuranoJo]

We used to see them as kids in KS, MO, and AR I believe (never one here in ID so far). But no memory of the synchronous displays.

 

[Blues]

Yeah, we used to catch them as kids in the Chicago 'burbs, and place them in mason jars with holes poked in the lids. They're amazingly easy to catch with your bare hands. They used to light up all over our back yard and in village parks. Never saw a synchronous show, though. That must be cool.

-Bob

 

[csxjohn]

I saw the first fireflies of the season last night. a few stationary in the trees and a few flying around the field.

The field was mowed yesterday, maybe that kicked them up or maybe it killed them off.

I'll be on watch every night for a couple weeks now. I'm looking into a cheap video recorder, something I've been wanting for a while anyhow.

 

[MULTIZ321]

The Science in a Twinkle of Nighttime in the South - by Alan Blinder/ U.S./ The New York Times.com

A firefly ritual of summer becomes part of a multiyear quest by researchers to measure whether urbanization threatens the insects.

Spencer Black
Fireflies seen at Shining Rock Wilderness Area in East Fork, N.C.


Richard

 

[csxjohn]

I did not see my synchronous show develop this year if it did. The fire flies were late in starting and the numbers were getting larger each night until we left for vaca on July 4th.

The area I view them in is darker than the surrounding areas because it's surrounded by trees on three sides and this helps protect the "cove" from light pollution.

I do feel there were fewer this year than two years ago but I'm not sure if it was the grass mowing pattern or other factors.

I will start a log next year and not go on vaca at the critical times, I really want to see that show again.

Thanks for the link.

 

[MULTIZ321]

The Dark Side To The Firefly's Flare - From Weekend Edition Saturday/ National Public Radio/ Animals/ npr.org

"Entomologist Sara Lewis talks about Photuris, a species of firefly that lures males of other species in and eats them..."


Richard

 

[csxjohn]

The Dark Side To The Firefly's Flare - From Weekend Edition Saturday/ National Public Radio/ Animals/ npr.org

"Entomologist Sara Lewis talks about Photuris, a species of firefly that lures males of other species in and eats them..."


Richard

Once again I did not get the magnificent show of a few years ago, maybe all my males got eaten,

 

[MULTIZ321]

A Surreal Synchronized Wave of Light
By Katy Koontz/ North America/ USA/ Nature & Outdoors/ Travel/ BBC/ bbc.com

"Although there are about 2,000 species of fireflies in the world, synchronous fireflies – ones that can coordinate their flash patterns – exist in just a handful of places on Earth.

And to see their most dramatic light display in the western hemisphere, you’ll need to head to the US, to the Great Smoky Mountains National Park.f

“We have 19 species of fireflies in the Smokies,” said Becky Nichols, a park entomologist who has studied the phenomenon for the past 20 years. “They all have their own individual flashing pattern, but Photinus carolinus is our only synchronous species.”

Four species of synchronous fireflies can also be found in the jungles of Southeast Asia (particularly in Malaysia, Thailand and the Philippines), but “they don’t fly and flash the way they do here,” Nichols explained. “They [fireflies in Southeast Asia] perch on trees and flash. And they’re completely synchronous,” meaning they flash both on and off together, as opposed to those in the Smokies that flash in a wave effect. Congaree National Park in South Carolina has a different species of synchronous fireflies, Nichols added, “but their synchrony is not as dramatic as it is here.”...."

Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

Fireflies in the Great Smokey Mountains Light Up at Once - Here's How to See Them
By Meredith Carey/ Conde Nast Traveler/ Travel Intel/ Tips and Service/ cntraveler.com

"It's almost that time of year again.

Synchronous photinus carolinus—say that five times fast. While the name of that firefly species may be hard to say, an early summer trip to see them just got a little easier. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park recently announced the viewing dates for 2017's week-long firefly season, where thousands of fireflies, also known as lightning bugs, sync up their light patterns. Though the Great Smoky Mountains play host to 19 species of fireflies, this specific type (the photinus carolinus) of lightning bug is the only breed of fireflies in the U.S. to be able to blink their bioluminescent butts all at the same time, making for quite the spectacle in the national park that straddles North Carolina and Tennessee...."

Getty
The fireflies in this specific area of the Great Smoky Mountains are the only lightning bugs able to sync up their light patterns.


Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

Illuminating the Secret Language of Lightning Bugs
By Jason Bittel/ Science-Nature/ smithsonianmag.com

For these light-up lovers, each flash in the night could mean sex or death.

If you're deep in the Southern Appalachian Mountains around dusk and spy a hazy blue circle crawling across the ground, take note: you just might be in the presence of a ghost. A blue ghost firefly, that is.
When most of us think of fireflies (or lightning bugs, as we call them in the North), we picture yellow and green-flashing orbs against a darkening summer sky. But the truth is, there’s an astonishing amount of diversity among these bioluminescent beetles. Over 2,000 species of lightning bug sparkle and flicker on this Earth, with more than 125 species living in the United States. And each one speaks its own language...."

Every species lights up the night in its own unique sequence of patterns, colors and flashes. (Aflo Co., Ltd. / Alamy)

Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

Thousands ol ' Firellies will create a Spectacular Light Show in the Great Smoky Mountains.


https://www.afar.com/magazine/thous...e-a-spectacular-light-show-in-the-great-smoky.


Richard

 

[DrQ]

I miss fireflies. We don't have them here. We were down on Galveston Island in May and I saw them flashing over the salt marsh around Jamaica Beach.

 

[bnoble]

I was just reading about these yesterday!

 

[taffy19]

I wished I could see this in reality but I have seen it at Disneyland in Anaheim.

 

[MULTIZ321]

11 Cool Things You Never Knew about Fireflies.


https://blogs.scientificamerican.com/observations/11-cool-things-you-never-knew-about-fireflies/


Richard

 

[Timeshare Von]

I loved seeing them again last summer while camping in Cade's Cove in the Great Smoky National Park. I had forgotten how much we enjoyed them as kids growing up in Virginia.

 

[MULTIZ321]

Why the Lights Are Going Out for Fireflies.

Why the lights are going out for fireflies

What can be done to give fireflies a brighter future?

www.theguardian.com

Photinus carolinus or snycronous fireflies

2 years ago was looking out over a 2 acre field here in N. E. Ohio and the fireflies were lighting as if they were strings of Christmas lights. I thought at first I was hallucinating again but no, the light show was synchronized. My wife had read about this occurrence in one of her murder...

tugbbs.com

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Richard

 

[pedro47]

We have them in our backyard in Virginia in the summertime. We called them yellow lighting bugs. Thank for sharing this awesome story on fireflies.

 

[MULTIZ321]

See fireflies magically light up this national park.

See fireflies magically light up this national park

Thousands of synchronous fireflies dazzle travelers in Great Smoky Mountains National Park with their unique flash pattern. Here’s what you need to know.

www.nationalgeographic.com

.


Richard

 

[MULTIZ321]

The Best Time to See the Great Smoky Mountains' Magical Firefly Spectacle: Frommer's.

The Best Time to See the Great Smoky Mountains’ Magical Firefly Spectacle | Frommer's

Synchronous fireflies light up Tennessee's Great Smoky Mountains National Park in Tennessee each spring. Enter a lottery for limited passes to see the phenomenon. | Frommer's

www.frommers.com

.


Richard