''Pyrophorus nyctophanus'' (=''fire-bearing night-shiner''), aka headlight beetle or carbunco, is a species of

click beetle Elateridae or click beetles (or "typical click beetles" to distinguish them from the related families Cerophytidae and Eucnemidae, which are also capable of clicking) are a family of beetles. Other names include elaters, snapping beetles, spr ...

that occurs on the

cerrado The ''Cerrado'' (, ) is a vast ecoregion of tropical savanna in eastern Brazil, particularly in the states of Goiás, Mato Grosso do Sul, Mato Grosso, Tocantins, Minas Gerais, and the Federal District. The core areas of the Cerrado biome are t ...

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. Its luminescent larvae are either soil-dwelling or found in tunnels in the outer layers of termite mounds, and are active predators of other insects during summer nights when their regulated glow acts as a lure to their prey. The adult beetles, though, are phytophagous, feeding on decomposing plant matter and exudates, and are attracted to artificial light. Pupae of this genus also luminesce.

"Headlight beetles are large click beetles notable among click beetles in their unique ability to produce light. An intense glow emanates from two round luminescent organs on the prothorax and a broad area on the underside of the first abdominal segment. In flight both sexes produce a brilliant blue-green streak of light that dazzles the onlooker." - Charles Leonard Hogue

Some 26 species of ''Pyrophorus'' are found from southern

Mexico Mexico (Spanish: México), officially the United Mexican States, is a country in the southern portion of North America. It is bordered to the north by the United States; to the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; to the southeast by Guatema ...

to Argentina and the

West Indies The West Indies is a subregion of North America, surrounded by the North Atlantic Ocean and the Caribbean Sea that includes 13 independent island countries and 18 dependencies and other territories in three major archipelagos: the Greater A ...

. The brightness of their light is legendary and

Peter Martyr d'Anghiera Peter Martyr d'Anghiera ( la, Petrus Martyr Anglerius or ''ab Angleria''; it, Pietro Martire d'Anghiera; es, Pedro Mártir de Anglería; 2 February 1457 – October 1526), formerly known in English as Peter Martyr of Angleria,D'Anghier ...

in his 1516 "History of the West Indies" notes that the Islanders tied a few beetles to their toes to light their way at night, but also spreads the myth that adult beetles feed on mosquitoes. Humboldt recorded that he read quite comfortably at night by the glow of a dozen beetles. West Indians also applied a paste made from crushed beetles to their faces and hands to appear ghostly in the dark.''Latin American insects and entomology''
- Charles Leonard Hogue

References

External links

''Systematics and evolution of the tribes Pyrophorini and Heligmini''Image of glowing termite mound
{{Taxonbar, from=Q2781926 Elateridae Bioluminescent insects