Aquatic firefly larvae eat snails, shellfish and small aquatic animals, while terrestrial firefly larvae feed on snails, clams, and some species will prey on maggots and insects. Most adult firefly species only drink water or eat pollen and nectar, or use the fat stored in the larval stage.
In the past, green glowing fireflies can be seen everywhere in rural areas or suburbs where grass and trees grow. They are very small, but don’t mistake them for small food. The following editor will give you some popular science about what fireflies eat. what.
Details
01
larva
Fireflies eat meat when they are larvae, and snails, slugs, snails, earthworms and so on are their food. After eating, some fireflies have to use their feet to clean their bodies. Firefly larvae can survive without food for several days or even a month after feeding once. Aquatic firefly larvae need to complete the hunting process in the water, and then drag the prey to the shore to enjoy slowly.
02
Adult worms
Fireflies hardly eat or drink, only eat some dew and nectar, and finally starve themselves to death. Only a few firefly adults will prey on small insects or other types of fireflies, and female adults of the genus Photuris can also prey. They mainly catch male fireflies of other genera or species of the same genus. It is the only genus found that the adult has a predatory habit.
03
Luminous principle
The luminescence of fireflies is a type of bioluminescence. Fireflies have specialized light-emitting cells in which there are two types of chemicals. One is called Luciferin (in Fireflies, it’s called Firefly Luciferin) , the other is called luciferase. Luciferin can consume ATP under the catalysis of luciferase and react with oxygen to produce excited oxidized luciferin. When the oxidized luciferin returns to the ground state from the excited state,