At-Risk and Endangered Firefly Species: journals.plos.org/plosone/article?id=10.1371/journal.pone.0259379 www.xerces.org/endangered-species/fireflies/species Firefly Specialist Group: www.iucn.org/our-union/commissions/group/iucn-ssc-firefly-specialist-group Support fireflies in your own backyard! www.xerces.org/endangered-species/fireflies www.nationalgeographic.com/animals/article/fireflies-tips-to-protect-from-threats

Dragonflies friend! They’re so fun to watch eat mosquitoes

@gardenforbirds

Ай бұрын

Haha, I’ll bet! 😅 I’ve not seen it in person but am definitely aspiring to have more dragonflies hanging about!

I just learned about a native firefly in my area that I had never even heard of...! It's weird, in the West we almost don't realize they exist because I guess they're more likely to only be bioluminescent as larvae, and as adults they are more active in the day and to use pheromones vs. light signaling here. But they do exist and apparently they eat a lot of slugs so YES more fireflies please.

@gardenforbirds

6 ай бұрын

So cool! I learned that too while making the video - before I hadn’t realized the eastern and western species were so different! Cool little creatures!

“Extra Squatchy tonight….” Funny stuff. Educational too.

@gardenforbirds

10 ай бұрын

😂 thanks for watching!

We love fireflies and they come out in the evening, around 7:30 PM in the Austin neighborhood all the way till 4 AM-5 AM. That’s the best thing about this neighborhood. Thank you for this video, highlighting the cute fireflies 🥰

@gardenforbirds

20 күн бұрын

That’s amazing, sounds like a wonderland!!

Thank you for this video. I remember fields of fireflies when I was a kid, and I just don't see them much anymore. I recently bought a home and I'm going to do my part in helping them (and I watched your other video about prairie plants--gonna do that too!). Keep up the channel, it's great.

@gardenforbirds

9 ай бұрын

Thanks so much for watching! Yay, that’s wonderful to hear! I’m outside with our little prairie garden daily - there’s always lots of pollinators and something interesting is always happening in there!

Last year i worked at a conservation job for the first time with people in their early and mid twenties. None of them saw fireflies near their homes ever and a couple of them had never seen a firefly in their life

@gardenforbirds

3 ай бұрын

That’s heartbreaking - thank you for sharing. Scary how fast things are declining these days 😞

😍 great video! Let's do what we can to enjoy the magic of fireflies for a long time to come!

@gardenforbirds

5 ай бұрын

Thank you! And, Yes!! 😀

I've never seen fireflies in my yard :( Plenty of lightningbugs though! :D

@gardenforbirds

10 ай бұрын

Haha! You got me! Funny enough, I’ve never really called them fireflies until I made this video 😅 Apparently “firefly” is used more out west but was faster to say than “lightning bug” 😂

@sauceman2saucyboogaloo530

10 ай бұрын

@@gardenforbirds It is a whole syllable shorter so that's understandable! I prefer to call them lightningbugs because lightning is cooler than fire 😊

thank you for the suggestion of host plants! im buying 2 pitch pine and 2 white pine from TN nursery!

@gardenforbirds

4 ай бұрын

That’s awesome! I love pines and especially enjoy the subtle fall color many of them show!

Many thanks for the great information, images and humor!

@gardenforbirds

10 ай бұрын

Thank you for watching! 💓

So we’ll done, why only 405 subs? Excellent work.

@gardenforbirds

10 ай бұрын

Thank you, means a lot!! I’m a new channel and it can take a lot of time to get established, but I’m sure enjoying the process! 🙂

I just found your channel and wow. This is awesome stuff. You editing and narration are 10/10. Is all the footage your own as well? 👏👏

@gardenforbirds

7 ай бұрын

Thank you so much, that’s incredibly kind!! I sometimes use some stock footage to supplement my own, but the video on this one is all from my garden. I was surprised to find all the stock footage for lightning bugs uses CG lights…I’m afraid to speculate why 😣

Last year I entered the Great Smoky Mountains Firefly Viewing lottery to see the synchronous fireflies and got tickets but was sadly unable to go. I will try again this year - as is happening elsewhere, the population is declining. Thank you for this video. I was not aware of the link to pine trees. Also, I will make a note to turn off my outdoor decorative solar lights starting in July.

@gardenforbirds

3 ай бұрын

I hope you get to go this year, that would be amazing to see!

Wonderful video...I learned so much! Thank you.

@gardenforbirds

5 ай бұрын

Thank you! 💓

Great info! We are lucky and have a good amount of fire flies but it has been more before! Trying to plant more native plants and hopefully help all the pollinators 😊 I am also in MD!

@gardenforbirds

7 ай бұрын

Love it, thank you for considering the buggos in your garden!! 💓 May you have dazzling lights every summer! ☺️

I have neighbors on either side who have more lights than a football field. One neighbor sprays for mosquitoes. By some miracle i still have lightning bugs.

@gardenforbirds

8 ай бұрын

Oh dear, that’s frustrating…the lightning bugs may quite literally be hiding at your house!

@messagegoeshere741

3 ай бұрын

Perhaps a living fence to reduce the light for them?

This is adorable, thank you ❤ I'm from Rome and some lucky spots nearer the outskirts still have fireflies, even if not as in the past. My dad is from a village nearby and I remember as small children (mid 80s) we loved to hunt them, as it was tradition that, if left underneath a glass, they'd leave some coins (I feel bad now, those poor things 🥲). I live in UK now, but me and my english husband to be are planning to move back to Italy soon, in a small country house north of Rome. I'll do some research on fireflies in the area, though to be honest I never saw them. Would it be possible or wise to try to introduce them? I hope anyone who reads this could reply ❤

@gardenforbirds

9 күн бұрын

So lovely that you got to enjoy them as a child! Great question about reintroduction! I think that can be a complicated process to do right, with challenges like sourcing the correct species, sourcing the insects ethically, ensuring they are set up for success in the locations where they are introduced. If there are universities nearby with entymologists, you could consider reaching out to them to ask more! They may be able to answer questions, or potentially support a reintroduction effort if resources are available. And there are lots of ways to fundraise nowadays, so you may be able to help organize and advocate from the financial resources end!

Would Ferns make a good habitat? Mom's house has a bunch of ferns and I've seen quite a few fireflies around there in the summer.

@gardenforbirds

2 ай бұрын

I would guesd they probably do! Ferns and baby fireflies tend to like similar habitat - moist soil with a good amount of organics. I haven’t seen much about this, but I think you’re probably right to make the association! And firefly.org does list one fern species to consider: www.firefly.org/plants-for-fireflies/

Can you also include what region you are in? Im in southern Louisiana and would loke yo know of things you say are fully applicable to my area

@gardenforbirds

3 ай бұрын

Sure - I am in Maryland!

@abcdeisthekey

3 ай бұрын

@@gardenforbirds thank you! And sorry for all those typos

@gardenforbirds

3 ай бұрын

@@abcdeisthekey Funny, I hadn’t even noticed them! 😄