Word: noctiluca
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Dates: during 1960-1969
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Professor Dr. Friedrich Schaller of the Braunschweig Technische Hochschule's Zoological Institute is a scientific voyeur. He has spent the better part of the past three years spying on the love life of Germany's two native glowworms. The males of the Lampyris noctiluca family, he reports with apparent approval, are choosy in picking their mates. The males of Phausis splendidula are as undiscriminating as sailors home from...
When a Lampyris female does not find a mate promptly, says Dr. Schaller, she begins to wag her abdomen. As time passes, her little belly dance becomes more frantic. Dr. Schaller rigged his dummies for vigorous wagging, and they had outstanding success in attracting mates. Lampyris noctiluca, he is convinced, has a highly selective optical system for locating willing females...