Related Experiment Video
Updated: Aug 1, 2026

Determination of Photoreceptor Cell Spectral Sensitivity in an Insect Model from In Vivo Intracellular Recordings
Published on: February 26, 2016
THE SPECTRAL DISTRIBUTION OF FIREFLY LIGHT
Abstract:
The in vivo emission spectra of sixteen species of Jamaican fireflies and four species of American fireflies have been measured with a photoelectric recording spectrometer. A simple technique of stimulation with ethyl acetate vapor was found to elicit bright continuous emission over a period of several minutes. Although the luciferin-luciferase cross-reactions were positive in all cases tested, peak intensity wavelengths show distinct species differences, ranging from 5520 to 5820 A. Widely separated emission peaks arise from the thoracic and abdominal organs respectively in the same animal, the click-beetle, Pyrophorus.
Related Concept Videos
Emission Spectra
Photoluminescence: Fluorescence and Phosphorescence
A pair of electrons in a...
Atomic Spectroscopy: Absorption, Emission, and Fluorescence
Atomic Fluorescence Spectroscopy
Flame Photometry: Overview
Flame Photometry: Lab

