Darrell Shepherd, age 11, of Enid, Okla., for his question:

WHY DO LIGHTNING BUGS LIGHT UP?

Lightning bugs, or fireflies, take to the air on a summer evening. Actually these insects are beetles that go through an egg, larva and pupa stage. The winged types are adults, and most experts agree that their fairy flashes are mating signals. There are many species, and each has its own code. In our most common species, the male flashes a split¬second signal  then waits for six seconds.

During the pause, the female replies with a flash. This goes on until the male and female locate each other.

This explanation may be true for the winged adults, whose main role is mating. But larvae also flash. Some experts suspect that they flash to inform their kinfolk they have found a supply of food. But this does not explain why the eggs

sometimes glow in the dark. Only recently, researchers learned how the lightning bug creates his wondrous light. Obviously we now need more research to learn the full details of why he does it.