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Photo: G. Bradley
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UK
Safari Tip:
The best time to look for glow-worms is after 10p.m. when it's really dark -
click
here
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Latin name: Lampyris noctiluca
Size: Approximately 15mm long
Distribution: Not common, but found in parts of south and mid England, lowland Scotland and Wales.
Months seen: Active from May to late August. They are most noticeable at night in June and July when the females light up to attract the males.
Habitat: Low growing vegetation. During the day they can be found under stones and logs.
Food: The larvae feed on small snails and slugs. The adults rarely feed at all
Special features: The glow-worm is not really a worm at all. In fact it's a beetle.
 This is
more obvious in the male, which is about 12mms long, has wings, and is a light brown
colour.
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The green light produced is about as bright as an LED. It is a cold light, so no energy is wasted in heat production. It's created by a substance in the abdomen called luciferin, which when mixed with oxygen, breaks down creating the light.
The adult beetles only survive for a few weeks, and in that time need to mate and lay eggs to ensure the survival of the next generation. All this depends on the low-flying male spotting the glowing female and mating successfully. In areas where there is artificial lighting, males are attracted to this, and get distracted from locating females. For this reason, glow-worm populations seem to survive better in
areas with less 'light pollution'.
Only the last few segments of the abdomen emit the light, as can be seen in the photo above. The female glow-worm has complete control over the light emission, and is able to switch it on and off at will.
 The larvae (left) also emit light, but from a smaller patch, and even the eggs of the glow-worm, which are laid in clusters of up to 100, can emit light.
Glow-Worm Survey
If you see any glow-worms please tell us about them - Click Here for
Details
UK Safari Glow-Worm Section
UK Safari Creepy-Crawlies Section
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