On 2 Jul 1996, David Yi wrote:
> Dear Microbiologists:
>> Recently on a hiking trip I came across a strange creature.
> Because I was walking during the night, under the full moon, a single
> point of highly luminescent green caught my eye. Upon closer inspection,
> it looked like a segmented seed or a light orange colored larva of some
> kind, but it had two bright strips of glowing green one one end.
> Has anyone seen anything like this before? Why, from the point of
> evolution, would a larva be luminescent? Wouldn't it be dangerous? Are
> things like this common? Have I in fact found something new?
>> Sincerely,
> TM
>
I'm not an entomologist, but it sounds like you found a glow worm. I've
seen them in Texas and they are quite common. My understanding is they
use the light to attract a mate. Is it dangerous? I would say there are
generally fewer preditors at night (I'm way out on a limb on this one).
There are many reasons for an organism to be luminescent. Some. like
lightening bugs to attact a mate. In the deep sea they can be used as a
form of communication between fish of the same species. They can be used
as an escape, a flash of light by the ink of deep sea octopus ink help it
escape preditors.
Hope this helps.
Douglas Stemke
Biological Process Technology Institute
University of Minnesota.
