The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service announced Monday that the blinking firefly in Bethany Beach is endangered.
This firefly, found along the coasts of Delaware, Maryland, and Virginia, is one of about 170 species of fireflies in the United States. The species is already listed as endangered by the International Union for Conservation of Nature. The Fish and Wildlife Service has announced that it is considering adding it to the firefly list. Endangered Species Act.
This is the first firefly species to be protected under the law, a Fish and Wildlife Service spokesperson said. If the species is listed, the federal agency would have to confirm that its actions are unlikely to endanger the Bethany Beach fireflies.
Currently, more than 1,300 species are listed as endangered or endangered in the United States under a 1973 law.
Bethany Beach’s fireflies aren’t the only fireflies at risk. Sarah Lewis, author of “Silent Sparks: The Mysterious World of Fireflies,” told CBS News earlier this year that about 10% of firefly species in the United States are not doing well. Some of the most endangered lightning bug species require very specific habitats to survive.
Bethany Beach fireflies, for example, live only in wetlands, low-lying freshwater wetlands near coastal dunes, according to the Fish and Wildlife Service. Climate change is affecting firefly habitat, with about 76 to 95 percent of wetlands likely to be lost to storm surge flooding by 2100, according to climate models.
Firefly species also face threats from development, light pollution, recreation, pony grazing, pesticide use, and invasive plant species.
Light pollution is a threat to a variety of fireflies because it prevents male and female fireflies from finding each other to mate, potentially reducing the number of fireflies in future generations.
According to the Fish and Wildlife Service, “Even for the brightest fireflies, finding love can be difficult.” “Even the interfering light of a full moon can exceed the visual Morse code, making it impossible for males and females to recognize each other. Light pollution from towns, factories, and roads seriously detracts from the buzz of these insects. ”
Candice Fallon, senior conservation biologist at the Xerces Invertebrate Conservation Society, advises to keep the following in mind: fireflies when caring for the lawn. She previously told CBS News that she suggested mowing less often or keeping grass taller as ways to protect fireflies.
This advice applies all year round, not just in the bright spring and summer months.
“So many people only think about adult fireflies, which shine for a few weeks in the summer, when in reality they exist all year round and we just don’t notice them, or We just don’t see them,” Fallon said. Said.