Common glow-worm

Lampyris noctiluca Today, 3 October

JanFebMarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctNovDec

now larvae feeding 38 days

larvae feeding Insect here all year

The whole year

11 August – 10 November

the coastal calendar, shifted 10 days later for this region

Sitting the year outGetting readyYoung aboutYoung leaving

Where to look

Damp grassy banks and woodland edges on still June nights, away from any street light.

Worth knowing

The glowing insect is a wingless adult female that does not feed and lives about a fortnight — the whole display is two weeks of a two-year life. Any nearby lamp drowns the signal, which is the main reason the species is retreating from villages.

Look it up

photos, sightings and recordings, off this site

iNaturalist — photos and where people are seeing it Wikipedia — Lampyris noctiluca

Regions

where this species is on the list

Dalmatian coastKvarner and IstriaVelebit and the DinaridesSlavonia and the Pannonian plainTukhlia, Ukrainian Carpathians

Phase by phase

dates as they fall in the region chosen above

Phase	When	Length	What it means
larvae feeding	11 August – 10 November	92 days	Caterpillars, grubs or nymphs feeding and growing.
overwintering	11 November – 29 April	170 days	The species passes winter as an egg, larva or pupa; no adult is on the wing.
in the pupa	30 April – 3 June	35 days	Rebuilt inside a chrysalis or cocoon; the animal cannot move or feed.
adults on the wing	4 June – 14 June	11 days	The new generation is out, winged and looking for a mate.
courting	15 June – 19 July	35 days	Song, display, fighting, scent-marking — pairs forming or reaffirming.
on eggs	20 July – 10 August	22 days	Clutch laid and being incubated, or buried and left to the sun.

Other insects in this region

Buff-tailed bumblebeeCleopatra butterflyEuropean hornetEuropean mantisGreat cicadaGreat green bush-cricketHummingbird hawk-mothRose chaferScarce swallowtailStag beetleSwallowtailTwo-tailed pashaViolet carpenter beeWestern honey bee

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