A new study will determine whether summertime at New York’s state parks has gotten a little dimmer — documenting what firefly species are found there and which ones might be vulnerable or threatened.
The “Dark Skies for Fireflies” project has collected data over the summer since 2023 at state parks across New York, explained John Pipino, project coordinator and a zoologist at the New York Natural Heritage Program. The project is a collaboration between NYNHP and the state Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation, with researchers visiting state parks from Long Island to Buffalo.
“Our hope is to find species that are maybe more vulnerable … species we may not usually find in New York State,” Pipino said.
Researchers have gone to state parks from sundown to midnight, collecting specimens and looking for the flash patterns male fireflies display to females that are unique to each species.
“A lot of folks don’t recognize that every species has a totally different flash pattern,” Pipino said.
The more common Big Dipper firefly, for example, has a yellow, J-shaped flash pattern; the Dot-dash firefly, which has possibly been wiped out in New York, has a greenish, Morse-code-like signal.
NYNHP was formed in 1985 by the state Department of Environmental Conservation and the State University of New York College of Environmental Science and Forestry to identify the location and status of New York’s flora and fauna, ranking species by how vulnerable they are to extinction or extirpation. A little under 40 firefly species are tracked on their website, with several deemed vulnerable or imperiled.
But it’s not entirely clear how many species there really are in New York, or which ones are growing in number or shrinking, Pipino said. That’s what the study, which wraps up observations this summer and is expected to be completed at the end of the year, aims to find out. It also may guide the parks office on how to better accommodate the bioluminescent beetles.
Since they spend most of their lives as larvae among leaf litter and underbrush — one to two years versus a brief few weeks as adults — raked leaves and manicured lawns can destroy their habitat. Faced with light pollution, habitat loss and other threats, one in three North American fireflies may be at risk of extinction, according to conservation nonprofit Xerces Society.
Pipino said fireflies are a great ambassador to the rest of the insect world, which is overall on the decline. He encouraged anyone to do their part to protect the species.
“Leaving some habitat in your backyard is really great. Think about your outdoor lighting in the summer,” he said. “You’ll see more than just fireflies.”