Kristel Guimara Hello everyone and welcome! My name is Kristel Guimara and I currently live in the beautiful northern Adirondacks. I have my Bachelor's degree in Biology with a concentration in Environmental Science from Paul Smith's College located in Paul Smith's NY. Currently, I am in my second year of graduate school pursuing my Master's Degree in Conservation Biology from Green Mountain College in Poultney VT. I am currently researching the effects of black carbon concentration in the Adirondack snowpack which will be compared to samples taken in the Arctic Regions. This I hope will continue beyond my thesis requirement.
I love to sit in my yard during the summer nights and watch for the signature glow emitted by fireflies, which belong in the family Lampyridae. This glow is produced by a light via a chemical reaction consisting of Luciferin (a substrate) combined with Luciferase (an enzyme), ATP (adenosine triphosphate) and oxygen.
There are several theories as to how fireflies control their "on" and "off" bioluminescence. A generally accepted hypothesis to this theory states that a firefly larvae use its luminescence as a warning signal to communicate to potential predators that they taste bad.
With roughly 2,000 firefly species, the range of blinking patterns that exist in this world is a sight worth seeing. Each species has a unique flash pattern. Each blinking pattern is an optical signal that helps a firefly finds its potential mate.
So as the nights begin to warm and your landscape begins to glow, watch for these nocturnal species. I know I will be out in the fields collecting them in my hands and seeing which ones have a similar flashing pattern.
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