~Catching Fireflies~ (Summer Event)

Catching fireflies is a magical activity, and it's always fun to run around and catch them. I don't know where firefly catching first started or even why, but it's an activity that's been passed down through generations, and it never gets boring.

To do:
You will need to find a meadow or woods near any sort of water, apparently fireflies love places near water. If you live near woods, make sure you turn off your inside and outside lights, as these lights will confuse fireflies, and keep them away. Grab a jar with a lid, (if you don't have a lid, makeshift one out of plastic wrap and a rubberband), then, poke holes in the lid, as to allow air in so the fireflies can breathe. Also, grab a handful of dewy grass to put in the bottom of the jar. This will create that humid environment that fireflies love. After an evening of firefly catching you will have a magical jar! Just remember to let the fireflies go, as they do tend to die easily. Also when catching them, try to be gentle with the fragile bugs. ^^

Did you know:
*Fireflies give off 100% light energy, and because of this, their lights will not give off any heat. For comparison, a lightbulb will give off 10% light energy, and the rest is all heat.

*Fireflies may eat other fireflies.

*Firefly populations have been dwindling due to over development of forested areas, and due to light pollution! Fireflies need the dark because they communicate to one another by flashing their lights in a certain sequence.

*In Japanese lore, fireflies are said to be the souls of the dead

*If you do not have any fireflies around you, they now have "firefly lights" that you can string up in bushes, and they'll look like real fireflies and you can have fireflies all year round! To read more on this, click me.

Either way fireflies can make for some great memories. I remember about 5 years ago, I walked into an enclosed meadow near my house, and all these fireflies where in the pine trees, and since there were so many, it looked like a field of Christmas trees!~ I'll always remember that! What are some of your firefly memories? :)

~Picture belongs to WindRanch from Flickr.