Thousands of Fireflies making Utah their Home [Video]

Thousands of fireflies have been spotted in Utah, proving the fact that the glowing insects are establishing large populations even in the west.

According to entomologists from Brigham Young University, who have been collecting insects for over 30 years now, this is the first time that they've spotted fireflies in Utah. Fireflies in the region were found by local residents who reported the presence of glowing insects flying over a farm.

"People don't think they're here in the west because fireflies are traditionally an eastern species. But we definitely have flashing fireflies now in Utah," said biology professor Seth Bybee, who studies firefly and dragonfly populations.

There are about 2,000 species of fireflies in the world and most live in warm and moist regions of Asia and America. These bugs have special organs that are associated with production of light. The organs are located near the abdomen of the insect. The oxygen in the abdomen is combined in these organs with a compound called luciferin. The process produces light without producing any heat.

The flashes of light produced by fireflies are unique to each species. Researchers aren't sure how fire flies control these light flashes.

Bybee said that fireflies will be a common occurrence in the region. Currently these insects have been found in a marshy area near Goshen, Ogden, the Uinta mountains, Escalante and St. George.

"I anticipate that we will probably find more populations now that we know the kind of environment to look in and the time of year," said Michael Whiting BYU biology professor in a news release. "The sightings have thus far been very rare and it is a mystery why they have gone so long without detection."

Bybee and colleagues are currently trying to identify the species of fireflies by using DNA sequencing and analyzing their flash patterns through video footage.

 "This is a big find for us and something that we hope to study pretty closely," Bybee said.