Fireflies are going extinct due to habitat loss

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When I was a kid, I enjoyed flying fireflies.My friends and I would chase them through our yards on summer nights, catching them in our palms and moving them to mason jars, where they would light up our bedrooms before succumbing to a lack of oxygen before daybreak.When they didn't make it to mason jars, they were put on t-shirts and lit up like bioluminescent beings.We were often their willing executioners.

Firefly are disappearing on a larger scale.According to The New York Times, scientists have been warning about the decline of the world's estimated 2,000 species of fireflies for years.

Pesticides, artificial lighting, and the destruction of firefly habitat are some of the human behavior that is causing the problem.Because of our sprawl, fireflies, or lightning bugs, thrive in meadow, woods, and along bodies of water.The firefly is being killed by urbanization.

They are being harmed by both human development and climate change.Invasive species that thrive in a warmer climate destroy more of their habitat.

What can we do to protect this bug?There are some easy tips for firefly welfare outlined by Treehugger.They include:

Don't be like me and other young sadists when you see them.You don't need to put mason jars on your shirt.Release and watch them go away.