The light is created by an enzyme ( luciferase) which reacts with other chemicals in the insect's body to produce light energy. It is believed that the flashing light is used by males and females to attract each other. These beetles have been misnamed fireflies. These are the little lanterns on the underside of the abdomen of a carnivorous beetle of the family lampyridae.

In the early evening, flashing lights can often be seen cruising around in the forest.

The snare usually catches small bugs such as midges, but insects as big as cockroaches can be entrapped. The blue/green light is a product of a chemical reaction between luciferin (a waste product), the enzyme luciferase, adenosine triphosphate (ATP - the energy molecule) and oxygen. The glow worms emit a pale light which attracts insects toward the sticky threads of their snare. The snares consist of tubes in which the glow worms are suspended, as well as long, hanging filaments coated in sticky beads of mucous.

Glow worms build ‘snares’ made of silk fibres coated with mucous. You might find them in cuttings, creek banks, rock faces and the roots of fallen trees. Glow worms can be found in shady, protected places with high humidity.

Arachnocampa flava is a species endemic to Queensland. Only three glow worms have been described in Australia. The glow worm isn't a worm at all, but the larvae or maggot of a mosquito-like fly. You can read all about these insects here, as well as bioluminescence and how it used by insects and other life forms. Both glow worms and fireflies are not worms and flies as their names suggest.

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