The Night the Stars Fell

You may know about the night the stars fell. It was on November 12, 1833 that the skies were lit up across the country by meteor showers in a dazzling display. But there were no meteor showers here in northwestern New Jersey on the night of July 3, 2018. There was, however, a dazzling display of light in the fallow field across the road from my house. Fireflies. Lightening bugs. A galaxy of sparkles to mesmerize and enchant anyone fortunate enough to wander out after dusk.

There is no light pollution on my road. The further we wandered deep into the fields, the more spectacular the twinkling celebration became. Our eyes were drawn to the grassy surface where most of the glitter was gathered. But an upward gaze into the treetops revealed a magical dance of glowing splendor. It was almost too much to bear. We lost the ability to speak beyond words like "twinkle" and "sparkle." We became children again, awed by nature's generous gift of bioluminescence.

Several years ago, I took my kids to Vieques for the December holiday, an escape from the memory of Christmases past, when our family was in tact. Vieques is an island off Puerto Rico, once home to a naval base used as an Atlantic training site for air, sea, and land maneuvers. Despite that ominous history, Vieques is also home to Mosquito Bay, arguably one of the most spectacular places to view the watery bioluminescence in the dark night. Blue light shimmers off one's skin like silvery liquid metal. It's pretty damn awesome.

The fireflies showing off in the field the other night were more awesome.

"Bioluminescence" simply refers to light created by living organisms. In the case of fireflies, of the 2,100 species that exist in the world, the eastern United States is home to Phausis reticulata, which emits a steady blue light. The males fly around, shining their light to attract the female glow-worms on the ground. It's a mating ritual to rival that of mere humans, don't you think? Because fireflies are easily recognized and not thought of to be pests, they are among the few insect species to be considered "charismatic." Sparkles and charisma . . . take a lesson, guys.

Glow fly. Moon bug. Golden sparkler. Fire devil. Big dipper. Blinkie. Whatever you call them, catch them while you can. Fireflies are in decline due to lawn and agricultural chemicals, disappearing open grass and weed areas, and light pollution. I will resist the urge to comment on the present state of the EPA. Instead, I'll thank my lucky stars that they can fall in my own back yard.