Photuris bethaniensis: taxon details and analytics
- Domain
- Kingdom
- Animalia
- Phylum
- Arthropoda
- Class
- Insecta
- Order
- Coleoptera
- Family
- Lampyridae
- Genus
- Photuris
- Species
- Photuris bethaniensis
- Scientific Name
- Photuris bethaniensis
Summary description from Wikipedia:
Photuris bethaniensis
Photuris bethaniensis, also known as the Bethany Beach firefly, is a species of firefly in the genus Photuris. It is found in interdunal swale habitats along a 25 kilometre stretch of shoreline in Sussex County, Delaware. It is extremely rare and in decline. The main threats to this species include habitat loss due to coastal development, sea level rise, light pollution, and the lowering of groundwater aquifers. This species has an estimated extent of occurrence of 33 km2, and the entire population occurs within one location, as the main threat (sea level rise) will probably impact all sites within the current known distribution by the end of the century. Various historical collection sites no longer contain this species, and the occurrence locality thought to hold the largest number of individuals, has recently been lost to a housing development. Therefore, continuing decline in the area of occupancy has been observed; continuing decline in the extent of occurrence is projected, as all remaining occurrences contain few individuals and face myriad threats; continuing decline in the area, extent, and quality of habitat has been observed; continuing decline in locations is projected as the sea level rises; and, as a result of the recent loss of a site, a decline in the number of mature individuals is inferred. As such, this species is listed as Critically Endangered under criteria B1ab (i, ii, iii, iv, v).
...Photuris bethaniensis in languages:
- English
- Bethany Beach Firefly
Images from inaturalist.org observations:
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Parent Taxon
Sibling Taxa
- Daiphoturis
- Photuris anna
- Photuris aureolucens
- Photuris bethaniensis
- Photuris brunnipennis
- Photuris cinctipennis
- Photuris congener
- Photuris divisa
- Photuris eliza
- Photuris fairchildi
- Photuris flavicollis
- Photuris forresti
- Photuris frontalis
- Photuris fulvipes
- Photuris hebes
- Photuris lucicrescens
- Photuris lugubris
- Photuris mysticalampas
- Photuris pensylvanica
- Photuris potomaca
- Photuris pyralomimus
- Photuris salinus
- Photuris sellicki
- Photuris sheckscheri
- Photuris tremulans
- Photuris trilineata
- Photuris versicolor
- Photuris walldoxeyi


















