What is it Wednesday: February 23, 2022

 

Can you identify what's in this photo?

 

 

Each Wednesday morning 

on Camp Lutherlyn's Facebook page

 the Lutherlyn Environmental Education Program posts a photo. 

 

 

Readers have all morning and afternoon 

to make their best guess about what the photo is. 

 

Around 6 pm LEEP provides the answer and a brief explanation.

 

 

Each week's What is it Wednesday post 

will also be posted on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

 after it is posted on Facebook,

sometimes with additional bonus information. 

 

In addition to bringing you current editions of What is it Wednesday 

on the Nature of Lutherlyn blog, 

we will be reposting old editions,

creating a What is it Wednesday archive. 

 

This photo was posted as a What is it Wednesday on

February 23, 2022. 

 

 

 

And the answer is....

This is a firefly of the genus Ellychnia.
Ellychnia fireflies do not light up,

and are one of the first insects to become active in late winter,

so they are sometimes known as dark fireflies or winter fireflies.

While fireflies are known for their flashing light displays during summer nights, Ellychnia fireflies are lanternless (they don’t have a light) and diurnal (they are active during the day), and the adults are not active during the summer but when they emerge in September and again from late February to late May. 

The usual firefly life cycle goes like this: adults mate in summer (that’s what the flashing is all about – attracting a mate). Females lay eggs, which hatch later in the summer. Larva overwinter under leaf litter or just below the surface of the soil. The larva pupate and metamorphose into adults early the following summer, and the cycle begins again as those adults look for mates.

The life cycle of dark fireflies is a little different. Adults which emerge in late summer overwinter in the bark of trees. They begin to be active again starting in late February when temperatures warm up. The adults mate in early spring (April-May), attracting mates using pheromones instead of flashing lights, and eggs hatch by summer. The larva remain in that stage for about 16 months. The eggs, larva and pupa do have fireflies’ characteristic bioluminescence, although the adults do not! 

At the end of their second summer, the larva become pupa, then adults emerge in September. These adults will gather on the trunks of trees, wedge themselves into grooves in the bark, and overwinter there. About 90% of the adults survive the freezing temperatures of winter like this! When the weather begins to warm up in late winter, adults resume activity, and we see them hanging around our maple buckets.

Spotting dark fireflies during maple sugaring is a sure sign that spring is on the way, and a hint of the promise of the summer evenings to come with their enchanting cousins. What seasonal indicators do you like to watch out for this time of year? 

For more on winter fireflies from renowned firefly scientist Dr. Sara Lewis, see https://silentsparks.com/2019/06/01/the-winter-firefly/.

This is also a nice reflection on fireflies in general and the lanternless variety in particular:  https://www.adirondackalmanack.com/2019/03/fireflies-of-winter.html

Like and follow Camp Lutherlyn on Facebook, to see What is it Wednesday posts when they come out and have the opportunity to share your guesses in the comments!