94 WOODLANDERS AND FIELD FOLK 



Another naturalist by the same process captured 

 as many as forty male glow-worms in an evening. 

 Still another suggestion is that the phosphorescence 

 serves as a protection or means of defence to the 

 creatures possessing it, and an incident which seems 

 to support this view has been actually witnessed. 

 This was in the case of a scarabeus which was ob- 

 served running round and round a phosphorescent 

 centipede, evidently wishing but not daring to 

 attack it. A third explanation of the phenomenon 

 is that it serves to afford light for the creature to see 

 by. A somewhat curious confirmation of this is the 

 fact that in the insect genus to which our British 

 fireflies belong, the Lampyridce, the degree of lumin- 

 osity is exactly in inverse proportion to the develop- 

 ment of the vision. 



Fireflies glow with greatest brilliancy at mid- 

 night. Their luminosity is first seen soon after 

 dark : 



"The glow-worm shows the matin to be near, 

 And 'gins to pale his ineffectual fire." 



As the insects rest on the grass and moss, the 

 difference in the amount of light emitted is quite 

 marked. While the luminous spot indicated by a 

 female is quite bright, the males show only as the 

 palest fire. When on the wing, the light of the latter 

 is not seen at all. Heavy rain, so long as it is warm, 

 serves only to increase the brightness. The seat of 



