Amydetinae[1]
Cheguevariinae[2]
Chespiritoinae[3]
Cyphonocerinae
Lamprohizinae[1]
Lampyrinae
Luciolinae
Ototretinae
Photurinae
Psilocladinae[1]
Pterotinae[1]
Genera incertae sedis:[1]
Anadrilus Kirsch, 1875
Araucariocladus Silveira and Mermudes, 2017
Crassitarsus Martin, 2019
Lamprigera Motschulsky, 1853
Oculogryphus
Jeng, Engel, and Yang, 2007
Photoctus McDermott, 1961
Pollaclasis Newman, 1838
The Lampyridae are a family of insects in the beetle order Coleoptera, with more than 2,000 described species, many of which are light-emitting. They are soft-bodied beetles commonly called fireflies, lightning bugs, or glowworms for their conspicuous production of light, mainly during twilight, to attract mates. Light production in the Lampyridae is thought to have originated as an honest warning signal that the larvae were distasteful; this was co-opted in evolution as a mating signal in the adults. In a further development, female fireflies of the genus Photuris mimic the flash pattern of Photinus species to trap their males as prey.
Fireflies are found in temperate and tropical climates. Many live in marshes or in wet, wooded areas where their larvae have abundant sources of food. While all known fireflies glow as larvae, only some adults produce light, and the location of the light organ varies among species and between sexes of the same species. Fireflies have attracted human attention since classical antiquity; their presence has been taken to signify a wide variety of conditions in different cultures, and is especially appreciated aesthetically in Japan, where parks are set aside for this specific purpose.
Fireflies are beetles, and in many aspects resemble other beetles at all stages of their life-cycle, undergoing complete metamorphosis.[5] A few days after mating, a female lays her fertilized eggs on or just below the surface of the ground. The eggs hatch three to four weeks later.[6] In certain firefly species with aquatic larvae, such as Aquatica leii, the female oviposits on emergent portions of aquatic plants, and the larvae descend into the water after hatching.[7]
The larvae feed until the end of the summer. Most fireflies hibernate as larvae. Some do this by burrowing underground, while others find places on or under the bark of trees. They emerge in the spring. At least one species, Ellychnia corrusca, overwinters as an adult.[8] The larvae of most species are specialized predators and feed on other larvae, terrestrial snails, and slugs. Some are so specialized that they have grooved mandibles that deliver digestive fluids directly to their prey. The larval stage lasts from several weeks up to, in certain species, two or more years.[9] The larvae pupate for one to two and a half weeks and emerge as adults.[6]