Ads by Yahoo!

" You want to see stars? Move to a small town like I have. The sky here is lit up like crazy with stars and its beautiful winter or summer nights. I only live 30 miles south of our state capitol where more than half a million people live but you would never know it. In my town its quiet, no traffic, no crime, stars by the millions, fireflies even this late in the year and when you walk outdoors the first thing that hits you is the sweet smell of corn, beans and fresh cut grass. No smog, loud city noises, walk late at night without worry. I love it but I do miss B-N simply because it really is a great place to live and someday I hope to return while I'm young enough to still enjoy it. "

" I really don't think fertilizer or pesticides have much to do with it. I might live in podunk Iowa but I was raised a city boy in B-N and I still fertilize and spray pesticides so my lawn is beautiful and the mosquitos are somewhere else besides my home and I still have lightning bugs like crazy. I love them tho and would be sad if they didn't light up my yard. "

" I lived in B-N for 40 years except when I was away in college and always loved seeing the lightning bugs for the first time each summer. It was just my way of knowing summer had arrived. I noticed every year there seemed to be fewer of them around. I moved to a small country town in Iowa 6 years ago and we have thousands of them here. Even tonight as I write this I am seeing fireflies in my backyard. Alot of it I would think has to do with the temps and humidity. I'm actually surprised to see them right now because its so late in the year although it is hot and humid tonight. Never the less I love the sight of them. "

" Part III: Our dwindling population of fireflies and butterflies and other bugs is overpowered by the blinding attacks of Japanese beetles. The yards in my neighborhood are over fertilized, over watered, over pesticided, and dump weed killer on a yard populated by small children and pets. If there's a bug, there's a spray hauled out by a freaked out suburbanite. A spider? Gads! A bee! Kill it! Crabgrass! Dump killer on it! We need to take a step back and figure out why it is that we think a lawn made up of only bluegrass, surviving only on fertilizer (it's CLAY under there folks) and pesticide is the natural state of things. You've been sold a bill of goods by the chemical companies. "

" Part II: The lights that are interfering with the mating habits of out charming fireflies is exacerbated by our city fathers in allowing massive numbers of streetlights to be installed in subdivisions, and unshielded lights in parking lots. These lights disrupt not only the firefly but also human beings who have their sleep patterns disrupted by the constant light at night. We also can't see the stars anymore because they are blown out of the sky by unnecessary street lights. At my house there is a street light across the street and one on my side of the street in front of the next house over. Now I tell you, that is too many and a total waste of energy. A light at the corner, fine, but that is all that's needed. "

" Jipsi and others: it's a long, long list of disappearing species. I moved away from Illinois after graduating university and returned to live after 35 years. What did I notice first? Where are all the meadowlarks? The farm pastures had disappeared and the grass waterways were either plowed up or mowed, for pete's sake. A church near us has about 3 acres that they could leave to grow into grass for meadowlarks but the choose to mow it like a lawn that they never use. The airport can't spare any land for meadowlarks because it would "interfere" with flight, no matter that their area is inhabited by geese and ducks. "

" Population dwindling? I live in rural Logan county, and there were so many it was nearly magical. Each night they'd drift up out of the corn stalks that they were sleeping in and light up the night for a few hours. If it were from chemicals, don't you think there would be even less in the country because of all the spraying for Japanese Beetles this year? I was still seeing them at home the other night and it's the end of August. "

" I have noticed this, too. It has become unusual, rather than commonplace to see fireflies, bees, and butterflies. There was one night recently when I saw many fireflies in Franklin Park, but I have only seen a few in my back yard this year, maybe 5 or 6. My yard is an oasis of diversity in a block of closely mowed, heavily fertilized, and insecticide filled yards, so I guess that has taken a toll on my insect life as well. "

" I'm sure part of the loss comes from people's idea they must rid their yard of anything that crawls. The chemicals we dump on our properties is killing everything living and will someday kill us. Remember the bugs are the canary in the coal mine. Time humans took notice and changed their attitudes and habits. "

" Actually, Eric... I've seen fireflies heavy in BOTH counties. It's only been the past year or two I've noticed a dearth in the CENTRAL ILLINOIS-wide area... Same with honeybees: as I'm allergic to bee sting, I was, at first, a little pleased to not have to deal with bees, last summer and before. But this year, I'm starting to realize how EERIE it is, that there are several bug populations more than just a little 'off'... and this is not a 'good' thing, after all, because our eco-system DEPENDS on them in too many ways to count.

But I will admit, your comment made me chuckle. ;-)
WRYLY. "

" Huh? I've seen countless lightning bugs most nights all summer, seemingly more than usual. Maybe the Thai fireflies emigrated to McLean County in hope of a better life ;) "

" It's not 'anecdotal' (that's a word they like to use when the younger generation thinks the older folks are 'embellishing'): just twenty to thirty years ago, our Central to NorthEast Normal backyard was so full of fireflies you could literally catch half a dozen of the FLYING (more like floating) insects just by swinging a jar in a wide arc.
Our yard TWINKLED like it was full of stars, for Pete's sake.
And my parents told me THEY used to see the fireflies last from June to August, not just a few weeks in July now (if you're lucky to spot one or two).
This year, in my half acre backyard garden in a small town a few miles south of B-N, I think I counted FOUR. Four sightings, all summer.

Their population IS dwindling. Period.
"Progress", and all its bright lights, smoke-belching factories and auto pollution glory, is surely responsible for this, as it is for so many other environmental tragedies.
So sad, but without giving up all of the technology, indoor lighting, plumbing, ease of transportation and mass availability of goods, that make our human lives so much more comfortable, what can, and will, we do? "