The life history of a species of Lamprigera (Coleoptera, Lampyridae): results of a preliminary study on laboratory rearing of fireflies at Queen Sirikit Botanic Garden, Chiang Mai, Thailand

Abstract

The life cycle of an unidentified species of Lamprigera was studied in Chiang Mai province, Thailand, based on ninety six individuals monitoring at a maintained temperature of 24 ± 3ºC and relative humidity of 80-90 % with a 12 h photoperiod. Each larva was separately reared in a transparent box containing a soil mixture. Cryptozona siamensis, a terrestrial snail, was used as the food source for the larvae. Females underwent five instars, while males underwent only three. After the third instar larval males pupated, but the larval period was about the same for both males and females because males remained in the third instar for a long duration. The complete life cycle was estimated to take approximately one year. Average pronotal widths from the first to fifth instars were 5.46 ± 0.18, 6.99 ± 0.53, 8.83 ± 0.73, 11.55 ± 1.51, and 13.40 ± 2.22 mm, respectively. First instar larvae occurred from January to March, and other instars occurred within one to three months of the occurrence of first instar larvae. Pupation occurred in September. Adult females lived two months and had a life span double that of adult males, which lived approximately one month. The diameter of fertilised eggs was approximately 5.56 ± 0.66 mm, with a size increase before hatching. The incubation period was approximately eighty days.