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mokenamessenger.com News
the Mokena Messenger | July 14, 2016 | 3
Families enjoy nighttime hike
Forest Preserve
District of Will County
teaches children
about lightning bugs
Jessie Molloy
Freelance Reporter
The Forest Preserve District
of Will County hosted
its annual Firefly Family
Hike at the Hickory Creek
Preserve off LaPorte Road
Thursday, July 7, giving local
families an opportunity
to learn, and get up close
and personal with lots of the
bioluminescent bugs.
This was the third year for
the program, which is run by
Forest Preserve Interpretive
Specialist Angie Opiola.
“The event has been wellreceived,
and we always
get a good turnout,” Opiola
said. “People are very nostalgic
about fireflies, so they
like to take their kids out to
catch them.”
During the two-hour
event, Opiola taught the participating
families about the
firefly’s anatomy and breeding,
uses for fireflies in medicine,
as well as how to repel
pests in one’s backyard
without harming fireflies.
According to Opiola,
there are about 2,000 unique
species of firefly beetles
around the world which eat
both plants and meat, and
are active at all different
times of the day. She also
explained that the chemical
reaction that causes a firefly’s
light to glow is not only
a cold light, but is also the
most efficient source of light
in the world.
After the educational activities,
the attending children
and their parents made
their own glowstick lightning
bugs to wear into the
woods and take home.
“When we go into the
Members of the Rojas family (left to right), Heather, A.J., Leo and Javier, learn about lightning
bugs Thursday, July 7, during the Forest Preserve District of Will County’s Firefly Family Hike
event at Hickory Creek Preserve in Mokena. Photos by Laurie Fanelli/22nd Century Media
woods, it’s going to be dark
and wet, and like firefly
heaven, but we want to be
able to see each other, so
that’s why we make our own
fireflies,” Opiola said.
Each of the participating
children were also given
their own “critter catcher”
to hold the insects that they
caught during the hike.
Once inside the woods,
the children were set loose
down the path to catch as
many fireflies as they could,
though the blinking bugs
were not the only animals
spotted by the hikers. A
mouse and several toads
also caught considerable
attention when they were
seen scurrying through the
undergrowth.
Opiola even went as far as
to scoop up one of the toads
for the children to pet. They
dubbed the amphibian Coolio,
before returning it to the
forest floor.
“I think this was really
engaging,” said Danielle
Sowinski, a mother attending
the event with her son
and daughter. “I think it’s a
great program for kids and
the adults.”
“I like when they host
the events out here,” said
Mandy Ruff, who was attending
the event with her
daughter, Jo. “It’s nice for us
because we live right here,
but it’s a nice part of the forest
preserve for things like
this.”
Ruff said she decided to
bring Jo to the event when
she saw it advertised online.
“I thought it would be educational
and fun to get her
outside, and it’s been a good
time,” she said.
While the parents appreciated
the educational spin
on the activity, the children
were all about the fun.
“My favorite part was doing
the activities under the
pavilion,” said Genevieve
Rauch, who had come to the
event with her sister, Gillian,
and a group of friends.
“Our friend’s little brother
kept spraying us with the
water bottle, and it was really
funny.”
“My favorite part was the
activities, and also going to
catch the fireflies, so pretty
much everything,” Zoe
O’Connor added.
Opiola summed up the
event’s appeal to both parents
and children with a
simple assessment of fireflies:
“It doesn’t matter how
old you are or how many
times you’ve seen them;
they never stop being super
cool.”
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Gillian Rauch, of Mokena, draws with sidewalk chalk before
the event begins.
Tyler Sowinski releases a firefly during the hiking event.
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