Pennsylvania firefly
| Pennsylvania firefly | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Photuris pensylvanica | |
| Scientific classification | |
| Kingdom: | Animalia |
| Phylum: | Arthropoda |
| Class: | Insecta |
| Order: | Coleoptera |
| Family: | Lampyridae |
| Genus: | Photuris |
| Species: | P. pensylvanica |
| Binomial name | |
|
Photuris pensylvanica De Geer 1774 |
|
| Synonyms | |
|
Photuris pennsylvanica |
|
Photuris pennsylvanica
Photuris pensylvanicus
Photuris pennsylvanicus
Photuris pensylvanica, known by the common names Pennsylvania firefly, lightning bug, and (in its larval state) glowworm, is a species of firefly from the United States and Canada. It is also widely known under the Latin name Photuris pennsylvanica, although the original spelling, with one "n", was common in Latinized names of the time and remains the valid name.
P. pensylvanica is a somewhat flattened beetle 11 millimetres (0.43 in) to 15 millimetres (0.59 in) in length. Its primary color is black, but it has two bright red eyespots on its thorax, as well as yellow edging on its thorax and wing cases and usually a lengthwise yellow stripe partway down the center of each of the latter. The species is carnivorous, feeding mostly on insects but also on other invertebrates, such as land snails and earthworms. The terminal segments of its abdomen are white-yellow and glow greenish-yellow when the insect manifests its bioluminescence. The females of this species, like those of other members of the genus, lure males of other species by imitating their flash patterns in order to prey on them.
In 1974, P. pensylvanica was designated the state insect of Pennsylvania. Its designation as such started with a group of Highland Park Elementary School students in Upper Darby, Pennsylvania. Fireflies are abundant in Pennsylvania and are enjoyed for their ability to "transform a midsummer night into a of tiny, brilliant twinkling lights" Discovering that there was a species of firefly named after their state and that no other U.S. state had adopted a firefly as its state insect, the students began their campaign to have P. pensylvanica made Pennsylvania's state insect.
...
Wikipedia