Fireflies & Facts

"Wonder - is not precisely Knowing." Emily Dickinson

(art by Rachel Byler)

Sometimes I am fascinated by facts, random, odd facts. Sometimes I am startled by them. One recent fact that shook me was “According to recent data, bird populations in North America have declined by approximately 2.9 billion birds.” This is connected largely in part to loss of habitat due to continual urban development and climate change. As someone who loves to watch and listen to birds, I was horrified. I was sure others would be, too, when I informed them. But what I encountered was mostly, “Oh? Really?” or “How do they know this?” (Too often I discover that people have a distrust of science, especially when it comes to the environment). Or, “I don’t really pay that much attention to them.”

What?

How can one not pay attention to birds?

I am constantly awash with amazement at spotting a white-breasted nuthatch or a golden-crowned kinglet. I have nearly gotten hit by a car because I was standing in the street watching the flight of a Red-shouldered hawk.

And it’s not just birds that are being impacted.

This same urbanization is also impacting other creatures, such as fireflies. So much so that eighteen different species are under the threat of extinction.

Fireflies have always been a part of summer since I was a child. They were a part of my childhood summers like getting stained by blackberry juice from picking wild blackberries in the woods. Or watermelon seed spitting contests. Or jumping through sprinklers.