Eat Berries Under a Firefly Galaxy

Firefly stunned into modeling by my flashlight and camera flash.  (Photo by Don Comis)

I saw my first Japanese beetles a day or two ago, on my red oak tree saplings.  I read that the adults emerge in summer after blackberries ripen.

Well, I don't know about blackberries, but our wild black raspberries were ready today and we got a fair harvest from them and our cultivated blueberry bushes.

My wife says that blackberries ripen after raspberries, so these three Japanese beetles weren't too far ahead of schedule.

I also read that Japanese beetles came to this country in 1916, accidentally, in the roots of iris shipped from Japan.  That was a harbinger of things to come as increased travel of people and goods, especially horticultural plants, has caused more exotic insects to be coming here than ever before.


I ended tonight with my now usual firefly watch, along with some Moscato wine and fruit.   In his  book, "Twelve Moons of the Year," Hal Borland gets it right when he says--in his entry for June 30:  "Linger as the first stars appear and you will be in the midst of a firefly galazy."

I find the firefly show to be better than fireworks and better than shooting stars.  They're a quiet show and they're more reliable than shooting star predictions.  When I see them light up the sky I realize why they're often called lightning bugs.  These little creatures seem to give off as much light as airplanes in the distance.



[Photo shows a firefly stunned by my flashlight and camera flash.  After seeing it flash, I know this was a lightning bug.  But I was soon the only one flashing.  It let me take a lot of photos until it slinked into the bushes by the deck.  I'm going to compare this photo with the many I've taken at night of a similar looking creature that hung out with the moths on the walls of my house and garage--but no flashing back in April and May.]  (Photo by Don Comis)