‘This takes seeing fireflies in your backyard to another level’

Park rangers at the Congaree National Park outside Columbia have been keeping their eyes on firefly activity in recent days as the time approaches for the what 10-year-old Chloe Zavislak last year said was like “Christmas lights blinking, except it’s outside. And it isn’t cold.”

The annual phenomenon when synchronous fireflies, for a reason still not completely understood, flash their body lights at the same time is approaching.

A notice on the National Park Service website says visitors to the Congaree National Park have “noticed an increase in the number of fireflies over the past few evenings and some have stated that they have been synchronized.”

This phenomenon lasts about two weeks and park rangers said the best time for viewing is between 8 and 10 p.m. The best viewing is along the bluff, park rangers say. The boardwalk is a popular place to view them and they can also be seen along Bluff Trail and in Bluff Campground.

The park service will be offering extended visitor center hours (until 9 p.m.) and special park ranger programs during the peak of the synchronization period, which currently looks to be between May 20 and June 10. This year, the Firefly Festival is scheduled for May 27.

Until then, you can still visit the park at night but are asked to follow these rules of courtesy:

• Please be considerate to other visitors viewing this phenomenon.
• Use red filters on your flashlights. Bright lights can disturb the fireflies’ flash pattern.
• Do not use flash photography. The flashing can be difficult to capture on camera/video.
• Parking is limited. Carpool when possible.
• Be prepared for the weather.
• Fireflies are only here for a few short weeks. Please do not capture them in jars or take them with you.

The Congaree National Park is located at 100 National Park Road in Hopkins, SC.

If you have questions, you can call 803-776-4396 to reach the park.

This story was originally published May 13, 2017 at 4:57 PM with the headline "‘This takes seeing fireflies in your backyard to another level’."