Photuris (genus)

Taxobox
name = "Photuris"


image_width = 220px
image_caption = Adult Pennsylvania Firefly ("Photuris pennsylvanica")
regnum = Animalia
phylum = Arthropoda
classis = Insecta

ordo = Coleoptera

superfamilia = Elateroidea
familia = Lampyridae
subfamilia = Photurinae
genus = "Photuris"
genus_authority = LeConte, 1851Verify source|date=September 2008
subdivision_ranks = Species
subdivision = Several, see text

"Photuris" is a genus of fireflies (beetles of the family Lampyridae) wherein are the femme fatale fireflies of North America. This common name refers to the fact that the females of these predatory beetles mimic the light signals of other firefly species' males, to attract, kill, and eat them. Their flashing "lightning bug" signals seem to have evolved independently and eventually adapted to those of their prey, mainly unrelated Lampyrinae like "Photinus" (rover fireflies) or "Pyractomena" [Stanger-Hall "et al." (2007)] .

The Pennsylvania Firefly ("P. pennsylvanica") is the state insect of Pennsylvania, and the Common Eastern Firefly ("P. pyralis") one of the state insects of Tennessee.

elected species

* "Photuris cinctipennis"
* "Photuris lucicrescens"
* "Photuris pennsylvanica" – Pennsylvania Firefly, Pennsylvania Lightning Bug
* "Photuris pyralis" – Common Eastern Firefly, Big Dipper Firefly
* "Photuris quadrifulgens"
* "Photuris tremulans"
* "Photuris versicolor"

Footnotes

References

* (2007): Phylogeny of North American fireflies (Coleoptera: Lampyridae): Implications for the evolution of light signals. "Mol. Phylogenet. Evol." 45(1): 33-49. doi|10.1016/j.ympev.2007.05.013 (HTML abstract)