[Bristol-Birds] Whip-poor-wills and Blue Ghosts
- From: dnldhlt@xxxxxxx
- To: butternuts@xxxxxxxxxxxxxxx, bristol-birds@xxxxxxxxxxxxx
- Date: Sun, 03 Jun 2007 21:36:43 -0400
Hey folks,
The Elizabethton Bird Club had a field trip on May 22, 2007 to observe
Whip-poor-wills on Rich Mtn. in Unicoi Co., TN. Several whip-poor-wills were
heard, and other species were enjoyed on the drive up, but the best species on
the trip was unexpected.
While walking in the dark we saw fireflies that had dim bluish lights that
did not blink, hovering low over the terrain in the hollow, under rhododendrons
that shaded the ground from the moonlight. We caught a few specimens, and they
were less than half the size of our familiar firefly species. Dianne Draper
and Jean Potter also saw wingless females in the leaf litter. I did a little
research and found out that they are called Blue Ghost fireflies, Phausis
reticulata. Here is a link to a site with info and photos.
http://www.dlia.org/atbi/species/Animalia/Arthropoda/Insecta/Coleoptera/Elateroidea/Lampyridae/Phausis_reticulata.shtml
Their season is basically mid-May to mid-June. Has anyone else seen these, and
if so where?
Don Holt
Johnson City, TN
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