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 ~ Gazing out at the dimming, tropical evening through our living room window, I spotted the ebony beetles swirling around the bushes and the pine tree.  "Abuelo!" I squeaked with delight, "let's go get a cocuyo!" Shuffling into the kitchen, my grandfather fetched  a wide-lip, glass bottle he had prepared by punching holes into the metal lid with a hammer and nail.  We walked out the front door and stood there mesmerized, watching the beetles fly to and fro.  One cocuyo landed on the stone pathway.  I tip toed very slowly towards the little creature, stooped down gently and quickly picked it up with my chubby fingers.  Abuelo unscrewed the top of the bottle and I released the beetle inside as he placed the lid back on.  Rushing back into house, I turned off the lights then blanketed the bottle around with my hands, leaving a bit of space for us to peak through.  How awesome!  Cocuyo's eyes turned into tiny, green neons, bright dots against his little black head, illuminating the darkness in the bottle with a most surreal light. ~

The pyrophorus or cocuyo is a type of firefly typically found in Cuba.  Their color ranges from dark brown to slick black and their bodies are light generators causing their eyes to glow green. When the head of a cocuyo moves back and forth, it makes a clicking sound. Their eggs are also luminous, taking several years to grow.  The cocuyo grows up to 3 cm in size and the adults feed on pollen or tiny insects.