The Unique Firefly Festival
- by Lou Bernard
- July 7, 2022
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Among all of the festivals in the Pennsylvania Wilds, Forest County’s Firefly Festival is unique.
Held the last week in June on Route 666 outside Tionesta, this event is very educational, is accessible by registration only, and has gotten smaller by design over the years.
The Firefly Festival has an interesting backstory, which I got from Peggy Butler, secretary of the festival’s board. The event is held on Peggy’s property, and has been happening since 2011.
“It has evolved over the years,” Peggy said. Peggy Butler is an intelligent, expansive person, and is happy to discuss the history of the Firefly Festival.
In 2011, the property was a bed and breakfast, and some scientists came to study the local fireflies. To everyone’s surprise, they discovered the Synchronous Firefly, Photinus Carolinus, an uncommon species previously thought not to exist in Pennsylvania.
Previously, the species had been thought to exist further south, in the Carolinas and Tennessee, until their discovery in that part of the Allegheny National Forest and Surrounds landscape. The species is known for its synchronized flashing of lights during mating season, an uncommon occurrence for lightning bugs.
“We decided to hold a festival for people to view the fireflies,” Peggy stated. “We didn’t think we’d get much of a crowd. We thought no one would want to come and see fireflies.”
As it turned out, there was much more interest than they’d assumed. Thousands of people arrived within the first three years, which was gratifying, but also damaging to the environment. This could have been dangerous to the fireflies that the festival was there to promote, so the board decided to scale back.
“Covid actually helped us with that,” laughed Peggy. “These days, it’s got more of a local festival kind of feel, and we get smaller groups by reservation.”
The event, which has already happened for 2022, tends to fill up fast. Although registration opens in May for the June event, Peggy cautions that space is limited to protect the environment.
“Some years, it’s booked within fifteen minutes,” she said.
If you want to be there for the 2023 event, it’s a good idea to sign up for the PA Firefly festival newsletter so you’re one of the first to know when registration opens again.
You can sign up for the newsletter and learn more about the festival at https://www.pafireflyevents.org/.
These days, there is less emphasis on the traditional festivities; the event has become a mini-seminar and self-guided walking tour for firefly viewing and education. Some world-renowned experts have helped to develop it, such as Dan Salvatore of the Museum of Science in Boston, and Dr. Sara Lauer, wildlife biologist from Bucknell. There is still entertainment and music played while participants wait for the tours, but the main emphasis is on the fireflies and education about them.
This year, the festival added a new feature. Though they aren’t in the Dark Skies landscape, they promoted the importance of dark skies by establishing June 19 through 25 as “Lights Out For Lightning Bugs.”
“We want to encourage people to turn off their outside lights for that week at least and maybe eliminate or reduce lighting all summer,” Peggy stated. “Lightning Bugs must have darkness in order to signal and attract their mates. Other nocturnal creatures also need the darkness to thrive.”
Peggy’s clear enthusiasm for the event shines through when she discusses it.
“We do a lot of educational programs,” Peggy added. “We have field trips and visits from schools, and we have campouts. We run our ‘Glow and Know’ program. This year, we’re having a raffle. We’ll raffle off a glamping trip, a private tour with special access. A night of glamping in the Pennsylvania Wilds.”
The Firefly Festival is one of the most interesting and unique events to be held in the PA Wilds, an area that is known for having a variety of fascinating and different activities.
