When the sun sets in the small mountain city of Tatsuno in Japan, thousands of night serpons start to shine in the darkness in a scene that happens at the beginning of summer, and usually attracts large numbers of visitors.
However, the luminous dance of these insects this year did not take place, as usual, in front of an audience, but rather out of the limelight, in isolation imposed by the Corona virus crisis.
And if the decision to cancel the festival disappointed many, it provided an unfamiliar climate of calm and tranquility for the night dances of these insects, whose lights light up and turn off at another time, while it revolves around itself as if it is in a ballet painting.
This natural review only lasts 10 days in June, and constitutes the last chapter in the life of the Siraj insects.
In her life that lasts only a year, these insects only shine in the 10 or 15 days of her life, in order to leave their offspring, as explained by the mayor of Tatsuno, Yazoo Taki.
"When we see a review of these ephemeral lights, we cannot help but be touched and say to ourselves that it is necessary to fight to the end," Taki told AFP. In this dance, he saw "a very Japanese aesthetic vision."
Courtship rituals
While the official in charge of tourism in "Tatsuno", Matsinori Funaki, said that the lights produced by these flying insects constitute a kind of courtship ritual, and a means of communication between male and female.
And he explained that it is "a tool that allows these insects for about 10 days to find a partner (to mate) and lay their eggs for the next year."
And when the right conditions meet and the rain or wind is absent, the night lamp insects begin their luminous dancing party, numbering about 30,000, in this place from the Nagano region where a river passes.
Taki pointed out, however, that "the archive shows that large numbers of Siraj insects were seen along the Tenrio River from the end of the 19th century to the beginning of the 20th century." However, these weak creatures disappeared completely from the area after that, with the emergence of industries on the banks of the river that caused pollution, including the silk industry.
After the Second World War, the city authorities made great efforts to rehabilitate the environment and protect the lamp bugs, and they have been holding this amazing festival for more than 70 years.
Savior snail
When these little creatures are present in large numbers, "the spectacle is amazing, as the lights of their lights blend with the brightness of the stars in the sky to form a painting on the waterpage", according to Taki.
Often the presence of night lamp insects indicates that the environment is not polluted, but these insects also have special conditions for choosing their environment.
To attract them, the Tatsuno authorities use a freshwater snail called the Japanese kwanina (milanese snail).
The reason is that night bugs grow for nine months in water, and their larvae are attached to this snail, according to Funaki, who pointed to a hole filled with this type of snail.
The city authorities have established a park that includes artificial canals containing fresh water from the river and waterfalls, with the aim of providing oxygen-rich water habitats.
Next year
The mayor of Tatsuno, Yazoo Takei, said that taking care of the night bugs makes Tatsuno hope they will enjoy a beautiful dance again next year, while the festival organizers hope his stay will be possible next year.
- These insects do not shine only the last 10 days of her life.