# My mantis glows in the dark!!!! (Pics!!)



## ABbuggin (Jun 20, 2009)

This is what happens when you feed your mantis a firefly.   I chose an adult _Cilnia, humeralis _ (wide arm mantis) because they are somewhat "transparent". The *only * light source was from the firefly being eaten.  I am *estatic *about how the pics turned out!!! Plus, they have not been edited.  

Specs:

ISO: 1800

White Balance: Dark

Shutter Speed: 20 seconds

F-Stop: 5.6

And a tri-pod for taking macro pics



























In this pic, she has already swallowed the firefly. B) 

She liked to move while eating, otherwise the pics would of been a lot clearer. &lt;_&lt;


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## MingMing (Jun 20, 2009)

Those are GREAT pics.... did you take any once the firefly got to her stomach? was it still shinning?


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## ABbuggin (Jun 20, 2009)

ming ming said:


> Those are GREAT pics.... did you take any once the firefly got to her stomach? was it still shinning?


Sorry, it didn't shine down there.


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## PhilinYuma (Jun 20, 2009)

Congratulations, AB, those pix are AMAZING! lol


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## revmdn (Jun 20, 2009)

Way cool.


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## AmandaLynn (Jun 21, 2009)

Whoa! Haha, that's very cool. :lol:


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## Katnapper (Jun 21, 2009)

LOL... omg, hehe!! That's just funny, AB... and pretty interesting. I was out collecting moths by porch light one night and saw a firefly. I thought about it, and thought... no, they probably wouldn't eat/like it. I figured it would taste bad. It's interesting that she ate it.  Great idea of taking the pics... pretty neat.


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## robert90 (Jun 21, 2009)

Realy nice and interesting pictures


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## Rick (Jun 21, 2009)

That's awesome.


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## Fisherman_Brazil (Jun 21, 2009)

creative! I would say if you keep this way, you will be a great scientist.


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## agent A (Jun 21, 2009)

2 words- totally awesome!!!!!!!!!


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## ABbuggin (Jun 21, 2009)

Thanks for the kind words everybody.  Although, it looks like I took several pics of the same firefly, there is actually a different firefly in each pic. Because I had my shutter speed open for 20 seconds, she was almost finished with each one by the time the shutter closed.  And yes, she is still alive (and she ate about 7).


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## revmdn (Jun 21, 2009)

I was always told they won't eat the glowey part. What gives?


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## ABbuggin (Jun 21, 2009)

revmdn said:


> I was always told they won't eat the glowey part. What gives?


I wasn't sure if she would eat them either, but I was convinced after she had eaten 7. :blink:


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## Katnapper (Jun 21, 2009)

Fireflies... for that special, healthy glow!! :lol:


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## revmdn (Jun 21, 2009)

Let us know if it has any ill effects, or glowing poop.  No, really let us know if it made it sick. If not I'll try with my newly adult wide arm.


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## leviatan (Jun 21, 2009)

Wow thats amazing wiew. So the fluorescens substance lights even after firefly dies. Interesting


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## Morpheus uk (Jun 21, 2009)

Amazing photo`s  

All we need now is a movie


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## Rick (Jun 21, 2009)

leviatan said:


> Wow thats amazing wiew. So the fluorescens substance lights even after firefly dies. Interesting


Yep. When we were kids we used to smash that part up and rub it on us. :lol:


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## revmdn (Jun 21, 2009)

Me too, but you have to kill them when they are lit up. It smears.

P.S. I no longer kill bugs for fun. Nor do I condone it.


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## ABbuggin (Jun 21, 2009)

revmdn said:


> Let us know if it has any ill effects, or glowing poop.  No, really let us know if it made it sick. If not I'll try with my newly adult wide arm.


No ill effects at all. Still they same hungry beast that tries to eat my fingers!` :lol:


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## ABbuggin (Jun 21, 2009)

Rick said:


> Yep. When we were kids we used to smash that part up and rub it on us. :lol:


I used to smear them also (but on the ground). I remembered that the "florescence" would continuously glow when smeared. I figured that being chewed would have the same effect. I was right!


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## AmandaLynn (Jun 22, 2009)

revmdn said:


> I was always told they won't eat the glowey part. What gives?


I don't know if it's the bioluminescence that makes them toxic, but I'm pretty sure that some species of fireflies are toxic. I read somthing once about certain species using their lights to attract other species, not to mate but to eat them and increase their own toxicity. But mabey their toxins don't affect mantises.


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## [email protected] (Jun 22, 2009)

[SIZE=14pt]Cool pics, but out here we don't find fireflys that much around, we did when I was younger how about you?[/SIZE]


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## PhilinYuma (Jun 22, 2009)

AmandaLynn said:


> I don't know if it's the bioluminescence that makes them toxic, but I'm pretty sure that some species of fireflies are toxic. I read somthing once about certain species using their lights to attract other species, not to mate but to eat them and increase their own toxicity. But mabey their toxins don't affect mantises.


So far as I know, it is only the glow worm larva that produces a toxin in its stomach. That can paralyze and dissolve the insides of a snail that it attacks and eats. The adult doesn't eat, so it doesn't need the toxin. The bioluminescent substance found in larvae and adults is not apparently toxic. Anyone know more about this?


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## Katnapper (Jun 22, 2009)

AmandaLynn said:


> I don't know if it's the bioluminescence that makes them toxic, but I'm pretty sure that some species of fireflies are toxic. I read somthing once about certain species using their lights to attract other species, not to mate but to eat them and increase their own toxicity. But mabey their toxins don't affect mantises.





PhilinYuma said:


> So far as I know, it is only the glow worm larva that produces a toxin in its stomach. That can paralyze and dissolve the insides of a snail that it attacks and eats. The adult doesn't eat, so it doesn't need the toxin. The bioluminescent substance found in larvae and adults is not apparently toxic. Anyone know more about this?


It would be interesting to find out more...


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## ABbuggin (Jun 22, 2009)

I do know that the adults excrete a white substance. It does smell bad, but apparently it it not toxic. :lol:


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## Katnapper (Jun 22, 2009)

When we were kids, we used to catch lightening bugs by the handfulls and put them in clear quart jars with holes poked in the lids. We loved making our lightening bug "lanterns!" But the stench on your hands afterwards.... ughhh!!!! No amount or kind of soap would remove the odor from your hands. It would take days to wear off. I'd about puke every time I would eat (bringing hands up near face).


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## hibiscusmile (Jun 22, 2009)

I never smelled it, but we did smear them too, wonder why God put them there, he knew we would kill them to play with the glow?


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## PhilinYuma (Jun 22, 2009)

hibiscusmile said:


> I never smelled it, but we did smear them too, wonder why God put them there, he knew we would kill them to play with the glow?


God was going through a pretty rough time about 6,000 years ago. Did you ever look at a wart hog or that spider thing that Massaman showed us? You gotta be hurting to create stuff like that.


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## agent A (Jun 23, 2009)

Isn't there a chemical in the abdomen that reacts with oxygen in such a way that you get the glowing effect?


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## ABbuggin (Jun 23, 2009)

I know it is a chemical reaction, but I'm not sure on whats reacting.


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## PhilinYuma (Jun 23, 2009)

agent A said:


> Isn't there a chemical in the abdomen that reacts with oxygen in such a way that you get the glowing effect?


There is! There is! Here is a good site that explains it with some nice pix: http://www.bio.davidson.edu/people/midorca...ermes/index.htm

I was going to do the Google thing again, but me mum says that if I do it again this week, she's going to take my computer away "for good!"


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## hibiscusmile (Jun 23, 2009)

Yea Phil, after He made man he was sorry!


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## PhilinYuma (Jun 23, 2009)

hibiscusmile said:


> Yea Phil, after He made man he was sorry!


Well, what do you expect, when you leave a guy to do a project on his own? What He needed was a wife to say, "No! Two inches to the left!"


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## OGIGA (Jun 23, 2009)

That's so cool!!! I wish I had fireflies to play with over here.


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## ABbuggin (Jun 24, 2009)

OGIGA said:


> That's so cool!!! I wish I had fireflies to play with over here.


There aren't any in CA?


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## PhilinYuma (Jun 24, 2009)

ABbuggin said:


> There aren't any in CA?


Nope. Nowhere up the Pacific Coast, either, so far as I know. Do you have any, Peter?

Guess I should add, though, that there are a lot of species next door to Ca, in ARIZONA, in the north and southeast, though not in the desert around Yuma.


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## ABbuggin (Jun 24, 2009)

Never knew that, thanks for posting.

Anyways, Ogiga, if you want some to play around with I'll send them to you for the cost of shipping. (or anyone else for the matter of fact)


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## PhilinYuma (Jun 25, 2009)

ABbuggin said:


> Never knew that, thanks for posting. Anyways, Ogiga, if you want some to play around with I'll send them to you for the cost of shipping. (or anyone else for the matter of fact)


I don't need any myself, but you're a good man, ABbuggin!


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## ismart (Jun 25, 2009)

Those are such awsome pic's! I always thought fire flies were toxic, but obviously not. Now i can add them to my mantis food menue. Thanks, AB!


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## ABbuggin (Jun 25, 2009)

No problem. I had always wanted to try it, but I never could remember to do it until recently. It is very weird to see your mantis glow in the dark!


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## OGIGA (Jun 26, 2009)

ABbuggin said:


> Never knew that, thanks for posting. Anyways, Ogiga, if you want some to play around with I'll send them to you for the cost of shipping. (or anyone else for the matter of fact)


Hmmm, sounds like a breeding idea to me!!!!

I heard that when people put them in jars, they're dead the next morning so I don't know if they'll make it here alive. Maybe someone can contaminate the environment with them here so I can just go get them from outside.


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## massaman (Jun 26, 2009)

How to Raise Lightning Bugs

http://www.ehow.com/how_5016829_raise-lightning-bugs.html


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## patrickfraser (Sep 9, 2011)

I want to see more photos like this. I was just pondering the idea while driving to work (even though I don't have them here). Used the search and ta-dah! Anybody have lightning bugs???


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