How do fireflies create light? - Emily A. Geest

You’re a male firefly and it seems you’re hitting it off with this female.

She’s sending you the right signals back— but what’s this?

Suddenly, she’s lunging at you. That’s not normal.

Let’s pause here to understand what’s going on and see if you'll make it out alive.

The first firefly is thought to have lived over 100 million years ago, illuminating the night with a glowing green light.

And today, there are around 2,000 firefly species, found all over the world, from forests and grasslands to marshes and deserts.

All fireflies produce light at some point in their lives.

They do this with a reaction-catalyzing enzyme called luciferase and a molecule called luciferin, which undergoes a luminous transformation when it interacts with oxygen.