Photo: Pixabay

By the Bronxville Green Committee

Nov. 13, 2024: When you were a child, did you enjoy running across the lawn on balmy summer nights, catching fireflies?  That magical experience is one many of us would like to share with our children and grandchildren.  But Bronxville doesn’t seem to have many fireflies.  Why is that?

The light that fireflies emit from their lower abdomens is their mating call.  In addition to charming us with their displays, fireflies and their newborn larvae eat many insects, including slugs, snails, worms, and even mosquitoes.  Fireflies help keep pests at bay and nature in balance.

So, where are the fireflies? Without realizing it, you may be killing them! Adopt these three healthy landscaping practices TODAY:

-Eliminate all chemical treatments to have an immediate positive impact. Many pesticides, herbicides, fungicides, etc. linger in the air, soil, and water for a long time. Scientific evidence confirms that they kill insects and birds.

-Put your leaves to work and don’t over prune during Fall and Spring cleanup! Don’t remove all the leaves from your property this Fall – instead, ask your landscaper to move some of them to the surrounding planting beds. We all have beds that are not front and center of our home. Putting leaves in those areas will help prevent erosion and support trees and scrubs. Whole leaves and other natural debris also provide the protection and moisture that fireflies, and other insects and their larvae, need during summer days and over the winter. Turn your planting beds into habitat!

-Aim outdoor night lights downward and use motion-activation and timers to reduce the hours they’re on. Night lights disorient insects and disturb their lifecycles, often with life-threatening results.

Why are fireflies and other insects important? They perform many vital functions in our landscape:

-Turn feces and dead matter into sources of new life!

-Pollinate 80-95% of all plant species on earth!

-Provide 30% of our food!

-Provide food for many other living creatures, such as birds and amphibians!

-Nourish the soil, adding the fertility required to keep plants growing!

-Eat pests on crops, reducing or eliminating the need for chemical pesticides!

-Delight and astonish us with their beauty and diversity!

By adopting healthy landscaping practices, you’ll provide a welcoming habitat for fireflies and many other beneficial creatures. You and your family will enjoy a healthier environment, and if you pay close attention, you’ll notice more wildlife activity in your yard.  Maybe even the return of those delightful fireflies.

The Bronxville Green Committee is a volunteer organization that is part of the Village of Bronxville. We work to propose and implement environmentally sustainable programs in our community. Visit our website and follow us on Instagram @bxvgreencommittee to learn more.