Humidity

Humidity

Originally uploaded by Mojo Denbow’s Photo Studio.

A good hike interrupted by rain and then intense humidity in the Dismals Canyon, Alabama. Past twilight the canyon lights up with tiny creatures called Dismalites. These “glowworms” require a select habitat to survive and are unique to only a few places on Earth. Dismals Canyon is one of only a few places outside New Zealand where they are known to exist.

Colloquially known as Dismalites, they are the larvae stage in the life of an insect called the fungus gnat “Arachnocampa luminosa” that emits a bright blue-green light to attract food, in the form of other flying insects.

It requires a select habitat to survive: humidity to prevent it from drying out; hanging surfaces to allow it to send down sticky feeding lines to trap the food; an adequate food supply of insects brought in on the river flowing through the canyon; a still atmosphere to prevent lines from tangling and darkness to allow it to show a light.

Dismals Canyon provides the perfect habitat for these unique insects to survive.