April 2020 - Parks & Recreation - 43

PHOTOGRAPH COURTESY OF ARLINGTON COUNTY PARKS AND RECREATION

The Annual Family Fireﬂy Festival in Arlington County, Virginia, draws hundreds
of people for an evening of fun games,
picnics and ﬁreﬂy walks after dark.

the peak time of firefly courtship.
There is a lot of truth to what he
says. Educating the public about
watching wildlife at night means we
might have to add limited public access after dark to any management
plan along with other objectives.

Creating Ideal
Fireﬂy Habitats
What should ideal firefly habitats
look like in parks? It depends on
the biogeographical characteristics of your parks, but four or five
things are necessary, according to
Fallon. " Ideally, you should have
varied habitats within your parks
that are a little wild, not manicured.
It depends on the firefly species you
have locally, too. Some like open
meadows; some need forested land.
You still need diversity within those
habitats and micro-habitats within
those, " she says. " Dark nights are
important! " It is one reason she
believes parks are ideal places for
fireflies to thrive. However, park
managers need to evaluate their
outdoor lighting and consider what
lights might be reduced or turned
off during firefly mating season.
Quality habitats can vary quite
a bit, but year-round moisture is
essential, according to all firefly
experts consulted. Whether it is
moist woods, stream valley floodplains, non-tidal wetlands or even
wet meadows - moisture is critical, especially for the juvenile stages. Fallon and others speculate that
prolonged droughts in the West and
Southwest may be seriously affecting firefly populations, which are
prone to desiccation, that is, the severe drying out of larval and adult

stages, in extremely dry conditions.
Pesticides may be a serious
threat to fireflies, but few studies have been conducted. Many
park agencies are moving toward
a much more thoughtful and limited use of pesticides. The use of
weed-killing herbicides, such as
Roundup and other glyphosatebased herbicides, have generated
intense public interest and opposition due to fear of human health
impacts and effects on the environment. Integrated Pest Management
programs are limiting the amount
and type of pesticides applied in
parks, and many agencies are looking for organic herbicides and flame
and foam (steam) treatments that
are less toxic. All these actions to
reduce pesticide use can only help
the cause of firefly conservation.
Conserving fireflies in parks will
address several conservation objectives. It will enhance habitat for
species that are in need of conservation. It will provide exciting new
opportunities for staff and citizen
science volunteers to explain a part
of the natural world to the public
- something that will slip away

Whether it is moist woods,
stream valley ﬂoodplains,
non-tidal wetlands or even wet
meadows - moisture is critical,
especially for the juvenile
stages.
forever, unless we take effective
action now to save it from disappearing. And, it is the right thing
to do for these mysterious, elusive
species that enrich the lives of all
who see them flashing in the darkness of night and leave us wondering why and how they do.
Tune in to the April bonus episode
of Open Space Radio to hear Dolesh
and Michele White of NRPA's conservation team talk about managing parks
for fireflies and engaging the public at
openspaceradio.org or on your favorite
podcast app.
For more information on fireflies,
visit xerces.org/endangered-species/
fireflies. For a detailed list of resources,
visit nrpa.org/SaveFireflies.
Richard J. Dolesh is Editor at Large for Parks
& Recreation magazine (rdolesh@nrpa.org).

PA R K S A N D R E C R E AT I O N .O R G | A P R I L 2 02 0 |

Parks & Recreation

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April 2020 - Parks & Recreation

Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of April 2020 - Parks & Recreation
