When the dark night rises, the Anamalai Forest glows bright!

Ages before light or even fire were invented, mother nature already had it in various forms besides the sun, the moon, and the luminary constellations. Fireflies or Jugnu as known fondly, are indeed one of nature's most precious creatures - a baraka; they not only enhance nature's beauty but apparently, play a massive role in balancing the ecosystem as well. And now, the very same species is facing a threat to its existence.

In the course of a research, a team of experts which includes the likes of Mr. S Ramasubramanian, Field Director of Anamalai Tiger Reserve, Deputy Director Mr. Bhargava Teja, Assistant Conservator of Forests V. Selvam and the Wild and Dark Earth (WiDE), an NGO led by Chandrashekar Rathnam, Srirram Murali, Mr. Mathi Thumilan, and Sreedhar Seetharam, which works for the conservation of nocturnal habitats, arrived at the Manambolly range of the Anamalai Tiger Reserve and what they witnessed and studied would mesmerize many.

They saw millions of fireflies clinging around the trees, plants, vines, and creepers emitting an iridium-like yellowish-green radiance in a rhythmic fashion which ultimately turns the jungle into a picturesque, wonderful fairyland on a dark night, something like droplets of iridium spread over the black canvas.

The NGO WiDE in association with the forest department carried out a study on the fireflies for a year that yielded some interesting findings about the life cycle of this sparkling species. The WiDE team led by its cofounders Mr. Murali, Mr. Rathnam, Mr. Thumilan and Mr Sreedhar spent a number of nights in the ATR, witnessing, observing and documenting their life, genesis, ecology, diversity, and factors affecting the population of fireflies.

Unveiling the enchanting world of fireflies, Mr. Murali and Mr. Rathnam asserted that the ovulation cycle of fireflies starts soon after the first rain of the season in the evergreen forest of the western Ghat. The larvae emerge in wet conditions as moisture helps them stay alive. One would wonder to know that this is such a rare species among insects which takes a year to mature.

The fireflies live in the larvae form for nearly a year and graduate through the stage of pupation. Fireflies like many insects are flesh-eaters but an adult firefly rarely eats. Contrary to it, their larvae have a rapacious appetite, and they survive on soft-bodied insects like snails, slugs, leeches, and earthworms. The larvae use their bioluminescence as a defence system. They emit biological fluorescence to keep other predators away.

Mr. Murali of the WiDE NGO adds, "The fireflies get wings in a year as they become adults. The adult fireflies generally avoid eating, by nature they're heat-avoiding creatures, in the daytime they rest in shaded areas away from sunlight. At night they come out full of charm and emit bioluminescence to attract the opposite gender."

Their adulthood is also not much different from many. Adult fireflies too had one purpose i.e., to mate and reproduce. The study shows that the female fireflies are bewitched to the synchronized display of lights from the male bodies, and it helps them identify their own species in the crowded woods. The female fireflies ovulate after copulation and then again, the entire cycle repeats. Interestingly, fireflies, their larvae and even the eggs display bioluminescence. The essence of their character is spreading light.

Now the bigger question is why so much study about a small creature? Why such a dedicated effort to protect the small species? If there were no fireflies, what would happen? There won't be any light in the jungles!? That's fine, the woods are lovely, dark, and deep! But the fireflies are not merely decorative lights- they contribute to creating an ecological balance.

The study done by WiDE in collaboration with the forest department found that on average, firefly larvae eat 5-10 insects such as snails, slug, leeches and earthworms every night. The study projects that a drop in the population of fireflies would prompt an exponential rise in the population of leeches, blood-sucking gluing insects which could adversely affect the ecosystem and might impart a negative impact on native wildlife species. Yes, the fireflies keep the leeches in check!

WiDE, the entomologists and the wildlife experts are worried as the population of fireflies is on a decline. Fireflies emit light at night, but they themselves are allergic to artificial lights. The use of pesticides and the light pollution affects nocturnal habitats adversely. Now the big congregation of fireflies are very rare even in large and wide forest areas. To witness them in such a huge appearance is yet another achievement which approves of the prolonged conservation efforts by the forest department", added Mr. Ram Subramanian, the field director of the Anamalai Tiger Reserve.

Mr. Mathi Thumilan and Mr. Sreedhar Seetharam, another two co-founders of WiDE NGO insisted on firefly conservation. The NGO works overtime to map the population of fireflies in India and they have identified Anamalai Tiger Reserve (ATR) to be one of the glowing hubs. The team of WiDE, have also developed scientific approaches towards conserving sparkling nocturnal beetles.

About WiDE: Wild and Dark Earth, an NGO founded in 2022, by Co-founders Sriram Murali, Chandrasekar Rathnam, Sreedhar Seetharam and Mathi Thumilan, working on conservation of nocturnal habitats and wildlife. WiDE works dedicatedly in alliance with Forest Department officials and scientists at the Advanced Institute for Wildlife Conservation (AIWC), Chennai, to identify the species diversity of fireflies through DNA extraction and sequencing to understand the impact of light pollution on fireflies.