On Friday, I went to the Great Smoky Mountains for the annual synchronous firefly mating season. There are only two places in the world where fireflies sync up like this, and I have always wanted to see it for myself. We showed up a little too late to go the main viewing site, so we were directed instead to a nearby picnic area.
I hadn't been to the mountains in a long time, so I enjoyed myself. I scrambled over huge rocks in the creek, saw a salamander (by the way, the Smokies are the "Salamander Capital of the World"), and saw a curious black bear sniff around the picnic tables as the sun went down.
The fireflies soon came out, which was fantastic. The synchronous flashing made the forest look like a Christmas light display. But every once in a while I could hear lumbering and scraping sounds nearby, and since I could not see in the darkness, I assumed legions of black bears were surrounding us. It was not surprising to me when I heard a mother's voice squeal nearby, "Bear! Bear!" and I dragged my friend as far away from the bushes as possible (making sure to back away slowly so as not to illicit some primal chasing instinct from the bear). Even though black bears are relatively gentle and peaceful creatures, I didn't like being in a picnic area in pitch darkness with food scraps scattered around me. Just another reminder NOT TO FEED THE BEARS!
Although this particular firefly event does not occur at a convenient time for school field trips, any trip to the Smokies is likely to become a learning experience. The national park has several ideas for teachers interested in exploring the Smoky Mountains with their students, whether in person or online.
Jennifer,
ReplyDeleteFirst, you are a great writer with the soul of a teacher! Your future students would love this post, in the way you combined the links with your first-person narrative. You are teaching them, but they wouldn't know it because it's so much fun to hear your story! You are also modeling use of a Web-based medium to communicate and create. Wouldn't it be fun to see what kinds of stories, logs, or reports your students might publish in a similar fashion online??
Second, I too have long wanted to see the fireflies in the Smokies, especially now with my small children. I think next year will be our year, when my youngest will be almost three. Did you bring red cellophane covered flashlights?
Thanks for sharing your story!