The glowworm or glow worm is a beetle famous for emitting
light. Glowworm is the common name for various groups of insect larvae and adult larviform females that glow through bioluminescence. They may sometimes resemble worms, but all are insects (Arachnocampa and Orfelia being flies and all the others being beetles).The common glowworm of English literature (Lampyris noctiluca) is the
wingless and, therefore, wormlike female of a beetle closely related to our
firefly. This insect is about half an inch long, black, with dusky reddish legs
and a marginal line of the same color. Like our firefly, the glowworm is
nocturnal. The last segments of its body emit a steady, strong, soft, bluish
gleam. As the light-giving female has no wings, it is easily caught. A couplet
from Hamlet gives a glimpse of the hours Shakespeare kept and of his keen
observation:
The glowworm shows the matin to be near, And 'gins to palé his uneffectual fire. Evidently the poet did not know that it is the female that glows. "The glowworm," said Mr. Edison, "can do something we have not learned to do. It can give light without heat."
Glow worms are actually glowing insect larvae.
The chemical reaction in the glow worm is very efficient;
nearly 100% of the energy input is turned into light (compared to the best
light-emitting diodes at just 22%).
Glow worms can be found living in woodlands and caves
throughout the world, except for the New World.
These little insects can even survive above the Arctic circle.
Adult females that glow do so to attract a male for mating.
The glowworm is usually about 1 to 2 inches (2.5 to 5 cm) in
length and will survive for about five months.
The above picture is of New Zealand’s Enchanting Glow Worm Caves, As they say, the best lighting is natural. Found exclusively in New Zealand, the Waitomo Caves get their twinkling charm from Arachnocampa luminosa, whose luminescence guides tourists from around the world on a daily basis.
