The Natural Patriot

Yes, I’ve previously sung the praises of maggots. And lightning bugs. And I stand by that.

But there are legions of others of our humble brethren (is there a parallel politically correct, gender-neutral word? sistren? Never mind) out toiling in the world at the less savory but nevertheless critical professions that make the world turn (figuratively speaking) and make life better for you and me. By, for example, cleaning up you-know-what.

A brief piece in Newsweek, of all places, has recognized this neglected proletariat of our terrestrial ecosystems. And there are other, similar creatures that clean up lakes and oceans. And I quote:

“Of all creatures great and small, it is the charismatic megafauna—tigers and rhinos and gorillas and pandas and other soulful-eyed, warm and fuzzy animals—that personify endangered species. That’s both a shame and a dangerous bias. “Plants and invertebrates are the silent majority which feed the entire planet, stabilize the soil and make all life possible,” says Kiernan Suckling, cofounder of the Center for Biological Diversity. They pollinate crops and decompose carcasses, filter water and, lacking weapons like teeth and claws, brew up molecules to defend themselves that turn out to be remarkably potent medicines: the breast-cancer compound taxol comes from a yew tree, and a leukemia drug from the rosy periwinkle. Those are tricks that, Suckling dryly notes, “polar bears and blue whales haven’t mastered yet.”"

And here’s my favorite bit:

“If Earth’s species are a living library, then polar bears and other cuddly mammals are the best-selling beach reads. Everything else is the volumes of history and literature and other scholarship, written in the alphabet of DNA: 99 percent of all animals are invertebrates. To understand the history and the majesty of life requires reading, and thus preserving, those volumes.”

Well said. Hail the the other 95% of the animal kingdom.

Man, the day job has been killing me — no time to dally at the Natural Patriot or anywhere else for that matter (cue violin music). Well, OK, we did go to see the Orioles-Red Sox game in Baltimore on Saturday, including Manny Ramirez’ 500th home run - but that’s a story for another time and place . . .

No, what drew me here tonight is the need to celebrate one of those timeless rites of the season, one of the simple outdoor events that has marked the beginning of summer for generations of children and their parents: the first lightning bugs (as we always called them in my neck o’ the woods) of the year. We saw them tonight, blinking over the expanse of green lawn, as we crunched up the gravel dive in the last light after Conor’s baseball game.

At least I hope it’s a timeless rite of summer. There sure seem to be a fewer fireflies around nowadays than when I was a youngster. And definitely fewer kids loading them into jars.

Which got me to thinking about what if anything we can do to favor these endearing creatures and whether I might be able to make the homestead more hospitable to them. Here is what I found out after investing roughly 2.5 minutes of research into the subject:

According to The Firefly Files by Marc Branham at Ohio State University, “Most firefly larvae are found in rotting wood or other forest litter or on the edges of streams and ponds at night . . . Firefly Larvae are predaceous and have been observed feeding mostly on earthworms, snails and slugs. Larvae can detect a snail or slug slime trail, and follow it to the prey. After locating their future meal, they inject an anesthetic type substance through hollow ducts in the firefly’s mandibles into their prey in order to immobilize and eventually digest it. Multiple larvae have also been observed attacking large prey items, such as large earthworms. Other observations suggest larvae sometimes scavenge dead snails, worms and similar organic matter.”

Predators? Who would’ve thunk it? And they seem such inocuous creatures. Dr. Branham again: “If you are interested in attracting them to your property:

1. Cut down or eliminate using chemicals on your lawn.

2. Reduce any “extra lighting” (photic noise) on your property, as this light interferes with the fireflies luminous signals (i.e., it is harder for fireflies of many species to locate mates in such areas). Also many firefly species are active only during a certain period of the evening. These insects determine when they will flash (i.e., the time of night) by the intensity of ambient light. This is why you don’t see many fireflies flashing on clear nights when the moon is full.

3. Additionally, low overhanging trees, tall grass or similar vegetation will provide adult fireflies a place to rest during the day and remain cool.”

Sounds a lot like a recipe for kicking back and letting your yard go to seed, which I can assuredly get behind — saves fossil fuel too (might want to clear it with the neighbors though). And what could compare with sitting on the porch in the long, dwindling evening and watching the silent twinkling lights come up? Another indirect benefit, one hopes, of the lawn’s gradual return to a wilder state.