When the days get longer and nights become warmer, fireflies start to bedazzle the evenings. But over the years, the firefly population has dwindled. As more start to question their disappearance, the fight to conserve fireflies is becoming stronger.
Seeing fireflies’ glow can bring a warm, nostalgic feeling to their viewers. Catching them and watching them fly away brings joy to many. So, what happened? One of the major causes of the firefly’s disappearance, as well as other endangered animals, is urbanization. When driving into a more rural area, one can still find hundreds of them, just like in past times. But in any suburban area that is newly built or well-kept, there will be very few. New developments, highly manicured lawns and pesticides are impacting the population numbers immensely. Within the new developments, light pollution and habitat loss are big threats. According to psu.edu, artificial light makes it difficult for fireflies to find mates. The lack of space for the population to thrive does not help with this case either. Pesticides and insecticides, chemicals used mainly for lawns to keep certain insects away from that area, are also contributing to their habitat loss. The chemicals affect all stages of life, giving the fireflies no quick way to adapt or escape from its path.
Vivian Calvert (10) thinks fireflies are extraordinary and believes dealing with light pollution would help fireflies rebuild their population.
“I love fireflies and think that they are so pretty and unique. I remember seeing an article at some time about the disappearance of fireflies, but I had no idea that it was so serious. To prevent their extinction, I think the best solution is to lessen light pollution. We could do this by adding shades around and over the tops of light posts so that their lights only shine onto the streets,” Calvert said.
Climate change is also taking its turn on the firefly population. Fireflies thrive in temperate conditions, with wet, warm summers and cold winters to support all stages of life. The change in weather makes conditions become less predictable and stable. These abnormal patterns can lead to overly dry or flooding conditions, which disrupt their life cycles. According to theguardian.com, Bethany Beach fireflies, found in coastal Delaware, Maryland and Virginia, are being affected by sea levels rising and are now considered to be extremely rare.
Cannon Mitchell (10) is disappointed and shocked to hear what is happening due to habitat loss and shares how his family helps the environment.
“I had no clue that the firefly population was declining at all! This makes me very sad. It just goes to show how much habitat loss and pesticides affect our environment. My family avoids spraying pesticides in our yard. I think if everyone did this, we could really help a lot,” Mitchell said.
While firefly conservation is still recent and continuously being researched, ecologists have suggested to homeowners to stop using pesticides in their lawns and to mow less frequently. Turning off any outside lights and closing blinds helps with light pollution. Planting native plants can also help with biodiversity, creating more spaces for them to live. All of these small actions can help firefly populations, and other insects, repair damage that has been made, according to fws.gov.
Marianna Saad (12) is unhappy to see fireflies disappearing because they remind her of her childhood and thinks if they are fully gone, their disappearance will cause a disturbance throughout ecosystems.
“This makes me very sad, because I grew up seeing fireflies in my backyard and seeing them go away as I get older is just a little disheartening. I hadn’t realized they were disappearing until I saw it mentioned and realized I have not seen a glow bug very much. I know that they are ecosystem balancers because frogs and birds eat them while they eat more soft worms like slugs. Their disappearance will cause a ripple effect,” Saad said.
