Sea fireflies may glow like the fireflies that send out backyard beacons at night, but that"s about where the similarities end between the two species. Scientists call the bioluminescent crustaceans washing over these rocks Vargula hilgendorfii, and here in Japan they"re commonly known as umi-hotaru. They"re visible at night in the shallow sea waters and beaches of Japan, although other species of the genus Vargula can be seen glowing in the waters of the Gulf of Mexico, the Caribbean Sea, and off the California coast.
Sea fireflies at the seashore
Today in History
More Desktop Wallpapers:
-
National Bison Day
-
Great horned owl fledglings
-
It s World Poetry Day
-
Montreux, Switzerland, and all that jazz
-
Bonifacio on the island of Corsica, France
-
A garden of prickly delights
-
Winter at Valley Forge
-
Midsummer in Sweden
-
Let’s talk fossils
-
Bridge of Hillsborough County
-
Pollinator Week
-
A winter wonderland in Northeast China
-
Black grouses lekking
-
Southern right whale
-
So, how long till springtime?
-
The power of the forest
-
Celebrating Flag Day
-
Super sandy Sweet 16
-
Gateway to America
-
Hay, what s up?
-
Heceta Head Light, Florence, Oregon
-
A crested partridge
-
Monet still makes an impression
-
Clouds over the River of Grass
-
A dying breed of tree thrives in an American park
-
Sea Slug Day
-
Here s looking at you
-
High trekking season in Upper Mustang
-
The Great Glen
-
Illuminating Annecy