00:04Fireflies may be a rare sight these days, with most species all over the world now being
00:08considered endangered. However, there are 2,500 known species of bioluminescent beetles,
00:13and at least one of them lived when the dinosaurs still walked the earth.
00:17This is Flammarionella ehaikuni, and paleontologists found the specimen trapped in
00:22amber. It lit up the night some 99 million years ago during the Mesozoic period, and while it is
00:27an amazing find, it's not the first, and that's sort of what makes it so special.
00:31That's because this creature's bioluminescent butt is different than the one found before it,
00:36meaning that despite having existed nearly 100 million years ago, there was already likely vast
00:41genetic diversity in these light-up insects. Experts say that fireflies use their bioluminescence
00:46to both warn predators of toxins they may possess and to attract mates. The most recent prehistoric
00:51firefly was discovered in Myanmar and is providing new insights to researchers studying the long-extinct
00:56creatures. With those investigators writing as part of their study, as the fossil record expands in
01:01the future, we anticipate further revelations that will broaden our knowledge of when,
01:06how, and why bioluminescence evolved in these fascinating animals during the Mesozoic era.
