We’ve noticed lots of fireflies in recent days – or, rather, nights – and they’re just delightful to witness.
The Free Press looked into the abundance of the little flying lanterns and bug experts say our wetter than normal spring seems to have spawned more of them than usual. The article also revealed that they’re randy little bugs. When they’re glowing, they’re either trying to attract a mate or responding to one that has already flickered by saying, yeah baby, your garden or mine? If you followed a firefly you’d apparently end up at a tree leaf that has a miniature stereo playing smooth jazz and two tiny glasses of wine.
How many of these horny little creatures will end up alone, in a jar, for a child’s amusement? One can only guess. There is one species of firefly, not found around here, whose females light up their bellies to attract a male who shows up, thinking he’s going to get lucky, only to have her eat him. And fireflies offer another reason to hate spiders: they feed on the little light-makers. That’s just more reason for the tread of my shoe to get revenge on spiders for beautiful fireflies everywhere.
Hey sis, remember Tom Merritt from high school? With the blond afro? After dark at outdoor parties we would all collect fireflies for him so he could put them in his hair and they couldn’t get out. He would walk around with his head blinking all night freaking people out! With this new information I wonder now if they were actually hooking up in his hair!!
Ahhh, I long for those simpler times….when beer, weed and follicly imprisoned lampyridae would keep us amused for hours!
I remember Tom! That’s funny in a “can’t-save-them-now” kind of way. They were not hooking up. They were still trying desperately to attract a mate! They were lonely and stuck in the afro of a funeral director to be.
On the very first evening of this summer, I was looking out my window at the lovely warm dusk and saw ONE lonely bug slowly flashing looking for Love. Poor guy was in the wrong place. No takers!
Aw. Everyone else was at the singles mixer and he was all alone, flicking away. Maybe he had better luck the next night!