A sparkle of fireflies lighting up the vast expanse of the night sky is what certain nostalgic memories are made of. Despite these bioluminescent beetles dominating our collective imagination and their romanticisation in Indian culture, art and literature, how much do we really know about fireflies?
In what could be a first, a new paper published in Zootaxa compiles a comprehensive checklist of Indian fireflies (Coleoptera: Lampyridae), documenting 92 species across four subfamilies and 27 genera. The checklist shows very high endemism and a broad but uneven distribution across India’s biogeographic zones. The researchers surveyed available literature on the species from 1881 to October 2025 and found that 60.86% of the Indian firefly fauna is endemic to the country.
The lead author, Parvez, shares that the lack of information on most firefly species in India while he was preparing for his Ph.D. is what prompted him to dig deeper into the largely unknown world of Indian fireflies. “Most of the species were not studied after the first detection,” he informs Mongabay-India.
Luciolinae is the dominant subfamily with 37 species, followed by Ototretinae with 31 species, Lampyrinae with 17 species, and Cyphonocerinae with one species. Luciolinae and Ototretinae are the most diverse subfamilies, with 11 firefly genera each. The study also lists each species with its current name, original combination, synonyms, literature citations, and distribution within India and other countries.
Most species occur in more than one Indian state, and at least 22 states plus one Union Territory have documented fireflies, although 17 species (18.47%) lack precise locality data within India. The Western Ghats has the highest occurrence of firefly species at 25.33%, followed by the North East, Gangetic Plain, Coast, and Deccan Peninsula at 22.66%, 17.33%, and 13.33%, respectively, according to the paper. The Trans-Himalayas and Himalayas each have 1.33% of fireflies in their zones, while the Islands have 2.66% of firefly species. Desert and semi-arid zones have no fireflies recorded.
The study highlights that despite their high endemism and ecological importance, basic resources such as complete surveys, updated national checklists, and conservation assessments are still largely missing for Indian fireflies. Parvez says that since this is the first checklist of Indian fireflies, it can serve as a baseline for future studies. “This research extends far beyond India, offering vital support to neighbouring countries where firefly studies remain scarce or non-existent,” Parvez says, adding that as a regional coordinator for South Asia (IUCN SSC Firefly Specialist Group) and the founder of the Fireflies Asian Association, he frequently encounters requests for firefly identification and data from across the region. “Our new checklist, identification services, and planned academic repository — backed by centres in Kerala and New Delhi — will fill these gaps, fostering collaboration and conservation throughout Asia.”
Banner image: Abscondita perplexa. Image by Parvez.
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