We are pleased to announce the winner of our most recent Monday Nature Mystery, Mickey Woll. (Please email your snail mail address and preference for a hat or tote bag to [email protected]).
Congratulations to Mickey for identifying this firefly larva (Lampyridae sp.). According to Xerces, fireflies are not flies but actually beetles in the family Lampyridae. Like all beetles, they undergo complete metamorphosis with four distinct stages: egg, larva, pupa, and adult. The complete life cycle can take anywhere from a couple of months to two to three years or more, with the majority of the life cycle spent in the larval stage. Firefly larvae are voracious predators of soft-bodied invertebrates. Unfortunately fireflies are in decline globally. You can help by adding native plants to your yard and putting your outdoor lights on a timer or setting them to be motion-activated. Light pollution is a detriment to fireflies.
Last Week's Mystery: Firefly larva Photo: Judy Gallagher
Each Monday we’ll post a new photo and identify the previous week’s winner. They’ll receive an ASNV hat or tote bag.
Be sure to post your answer on our Facebook page @AudubonVA under the Monday Mystery post...do not reply to this email with your guess! We only accept entries from our Facebook page, not via email.
Please remember to write the common name, being mindful of hyphens, uppercase and lowercase letters and always include the Latin name in parentheses. To learn more about bird names click here.
What is this? Photo: Judy Gallagher
This week’s Mystery: What is this?
Post your guess (please list both common name and Latin name) on our Facebook page @AudubonVA under this week's Monday Nature Mystery. Remember, we only accept entries from our Facebook page, not via email!
Good luck!
-Audubon Society of Northern Virginia
Please note that we only accept entries on our Facebook page where they are date- and time-stamped. Remember that, if you need to correct your entry, you should make a new posting instead of correcting the old one so that we get a correct time stamp for your correction. Winners are limited to one prize every 90 days, maximum 2 per person. If you have already won twice, please let newer people have a chance and refrain from answering first.
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