Help sought throwing light on glow-worms

On warmer nights in June, the bright green light of the female shines out to attract a mate.

Now, national park ecologists, countryside rangers and naturalists are conducting surveys and asking anyone who has seen a glow worm to send in details.

National park ecologist Rebekah Newman said: “We’d very much welcome people’s help on this, especially if they have records of their sightings going back a few years.

“Because glow-worms only glow after dark in midsummer, it has proved difficult to amass detailed records.

“It’s possible that they are more widespread in limestone dales and grasslands or alongside trails and railway lines than we know of.

“Many of our records are now up to 30 years old, so it would be really valuable to get an up-to-date picture.”

Naturalists think that UK glow- worm numbers are declining, possibly due to degradation of their habitat, but also due to light pollution.

The larvae live for two years, but when they pupate into adult glow- worms they no longer feed, giving them a very short lifespan in which to breed.

Nick Moyes, formerly of Derby Museum, has been studying glow-worms in Derbyshire since the 1990s and has been commissioned to help the survey.

He said: “With the public’s help we can find out a lot more about glow-worm sites than we would if we had just looked for them ourselves.”

Those who spot the green glow of a glow-worm should email details of where they were seen and when to [email protected]