FW: Read it all (its short)
Missy Poole
Hey guys this was sent to me from my husband and thought that it would be worth looking into for all our boys.
Just an idea.
We could do this with the kids. You could read about it and if is easy
enough have your boys do it in scouts. Love you
Experts think firefly population in decline, seek public help with study
By SARAH MOORE
June 17, 2009
Posted: June 23, 2009, 5:15 PM CDT Last updated: June 23, 2009, 10:25 PM
CDT
Mo Way remembers seeing swarms of fireflies one night about 15 years ago
in a forest near Moss Hill.
It was an impressive sight.
But Way, a Texas AgriLife Extension Service entomologist, and many other
experts believe there are fewer of the bugs around than there once were.
These flying, flickering balls of light are as mysterious as they are
beautiful. And they have not been studied enough to tell whether they
truly are disappearing.
Literature and data on the bugs is in short supply, experts say.
To fill that void, the Museum of Science in Boston launched Firefly Watch
last year, an ambitious public science project.
The museum's science educator and project coordinator, Don Salvatore, said
many researchers believe firefly populations are on the decline.
Anyone can get involved with Firefly Watch - it merely requires a
commitment to observe a particular habitat once a week during firefly
season, then log on and answer questions about the weather and other
conditions.
Salvatore said participants are encouraged to pick familiar, conveniently
located areas - like their own backyards.
"Another thing we're trying to do with the project is, if they are
disappearing, figure out why," Salvatore said in a telephone interview
from Boston.
Loss of habitat, light pollution and pesticide use are theories about why
numbers could be declining, experts say.
Last year, about 1,400 people in 36 states signed up for the project.
According to a map showing the locations of participants, no one in the
Golden Triangle or Piney Woods region has thus far submitted data to
Firefly Watch.
Way believes habitat is an important factor, as he used to see them around
some levees by a canal near his house, but they went away after the levee
was bulldozed.
"I think in general the populations are decreasing and I think it's the
habitat encroachment," he said.
Firefly fans lament the decline.
Love lights
Besides the astonishing ability to produce light with their own bodies,
fireflies have love lives more fascinating than Brangelina.
When asked how seeing fireflies makes them feel, most people use words
like "magical" and "peaceful."
"That's not what the fireflies are feeling," Salvatore said, adding that
firefly mating rituals are a deadly serious and sometimes brutal endeavor.
The male firefly cruises around blinking, and the female sits waiting
until she sees a male she's interested in. Then she'll blink an
invitation.
"If she's not interested, she stays dark and he can't find her," Salvatore
said.
Chris Perkins
From: pack-220...@googlegroups.com [mailto:pack-220...@googlegroups.com] On Behalf Of Missy Poole
Sent: Wednesday, June 24, 2009
8:51 AM
To: pack-220...@googlegroups.com
Subject: FW: Read it all (its
short)
tsim...@gt.rr.com
> This is interesting.
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> https://www.mos.org/fireflywatch/
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> _____
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Sarah Carlton
Sent from my iPhone