Friday, June 22, 2012

Lights of a Warm Summer's Night

I remember a summer night of my youth when the neighbor boys and I pitched our tents along the river in the neighbor's meadow. Laying on the ground looking up at the stars in the sky, I saw them for the first time in my life...

Fireflies.

Familiar to most of us, (some call them Lightning Bugs) few realize that there are about 2,000 firefly species in the world, usually living in warm environments.

That blink blink blink of the firefly is actually an optical signal used to find potential mates. Scientists are not sure how the insects regulate this process to turn their lights on and off.

Regardless of how or why the firefly illuminates itself, it's an amazingly relaxing site that I can what for hours.

This past weekend, during the Canada camping trip, there were tens of thousands of flies lighting the wooded and tall-grassy areas that surrounds the campsites. Walking into the woods and snagging a few in my hands took me back to that childhood campout.

Just another reason I love summer camping.

My camera couldn't catch the brilliance of the fireflies. This photo is from the internet.
 See if fireflies is the brightest subject here at BareNakedBill.blogspot.com

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