How do we protect firefly populations while also achieving other ecological goals on the landscape? This is a question that land managers grapple with when figuring out how to maintain the wildlife habitats they steward. Prescribed fire, also known as controlled burns or cultural fire, is the intentional use of fire to sustain or regenerate ... Read more| Firefly Atlas
By Candace Fallon, Senior Endangered Species Conservation Biologist Whenever someone asks me why I’m visiting southern Arizona in the summer, and I tell them it’s for firefly surveys, they look at me blankly. Fireflies? Here? No way. In the desert? No. East Coast, sure. Midwest, absolutely. But Arizona? Perhaps Arizona is not the first place ... Read more The post Field notes: Chasing Arizona’s fireflies appeared first on Firefly Atlas.| Firefly Atlas
Henry Brean, Arizona Daily Star | “Each year in late spring, the forest fills with fireflies that flash in unison at Great SmokyMountains National Park. The synchronous show draws so many spectators to western Tennessee that the park service has to hold a lottery to limit the number of vehicles in the area at the ... Read more The post Rare firefly species spotted at Tucson’s Saguaro National Park | Arizona Daily Star appeared first on Firefly Atlas.| Firefly Atlas
Seth Borenstein, Associated Press | “On a muggy July evening, Delaware state biologist Jason Davis is doing what kids have done for ages: Trying to catch a firefly. It’s nowhere near as easy as the summer evenings of his own childhood, with only a few in this large wetland between a bay and the Atlantic ... Read more The post The flickering glow of summer’s fireflies: too important to lose, too small to notice them gone | Associated Press appeared first on Firefly Atlas.| Firefly Atlas
Are you in training to become a Master Naturalist, or looking for a new project to undertake as part of your annual certification requirements? Many Master Naturalist programs require 30-40 hours of volunteer work each year. We might be biased, but we think participating in the Firefly Atlas and related conservation efforts is an excellent ... Read more| Firefly Atlas
Firefly researchers (professionals and community scientists alike) often find themselves on a steep learning curve when gathering data on firefly species, especially when they are using methods that don’t involve collecting specimens. This post breaks down some of the ways to ensure that the data you are collecting is as useful as possible for species, ... Read more| Firefly Atlas
Candace Fallon, Senior Endangered Species Conservation Biologist If you submit data to the Firefly Atlas, you might be wondering what becomes of that information. You likely know that we are crowdsourcing data to better understand firefly distributions, seasonality, habitat associations, and more. But what does that mean in practice? And who has access to this ... Read more| Firefly Atlas
By Richard Joyce, Endangered Species Conservation Biologist By the Numbers Firefly Atlas grew by leaps and bounds this year, as community scientists and agency biologists across North America dove into making firefly observations and conducting surveys. Check out some of the Firefly Atlas’s 2024 statistics below! Notable Findings Firefly Atlas participants made important and fascinating ... Read more The post Firefly Atlas 2024 Year in Review appeared first on Firefly Atlas.| Firefly Atlas
By Candace Fallon, Senior Endangered Species Conservation Biologist I’ll cut straight to the chase: reality. Fireflies in the Pacific Northwest are very real, although they may not quite match up to the image you have in your mind. Nineteen species of fireflies have been reported from the Pacific Northwest, which we are defining here to ... Read more The post Pacific Northwest fireflies: Myth or reality? appeared first on Firefly Atlas.| Firefly Atlas
By Richard Joyce, Endangered Species Conservation Biologist You’ve created a Firefly Atlas account, looked over the participant handbook, and watched the training video. You’ve read the Community Science Code of Conduct, gathered the equipment you’ll need, and printed out survey data-sheets. There’s just one issue: you don’t live in any of the focal regions highlighted ... Read more| Firefly Atlas