Watching a Fireflies

Lampyridae is a family of insects in the beetle order Coleoptera. They are winged beetles, and commonly called fireflies or lightning bugs for their conspicuous crepuscular use of bioluminescence to attract mates or prey. Fireflies produce a "cold light", with no infrared or ultraviolet frequencies. This chemically produced light from the lower abdomen may be yellow, green, or pale red, with wavelengths from 510 to 670 nanometers.

About 2,000 species of firefly are found in temperate and tropical environments. Many are in marshes or in wet, wooded areas where their larvae have abundant sources of food. These larvae emit light and often are called "glowworms", in particular, in Eurasia. In the Americas, "glow worm" also refers to the related Phengodidae. In many species, both male and female fireflies have the ability to fly, but in some species, females are flightless

Fireflies are also known 'Lightning Bugs' and they shine brightly at the night to attract a suitable partner. Apparently, they are able to shine during the day too but humans then cannot see it. They are only seen at night in and along the 'Berembang' trees along the Selangor River. We could not spot any in the palm trees or any other trees for that matter. Often their flashing becomes sychronised, the overall effect is just like the twinkling lights of a Christmas tree. A trip along the river banks at the Selangor River at night is truly magnificient, and definitely a great attraction that should not be missed.

Watching fireflies along Kuala Selangor riverbanks

 Fireflies or lightning bugs

How to get to the fireflies in Kuala Selangor

If you wish to watch the fireflies, you can get there by bus or taxi and you also can rent a car to get there. There are multiple ways to get to the Kuala Selangor Firefly Park. You can get e bus from Puduraya bus station to Kuala Selangor for a couple of ringgits. From there you need to take another bus that passes the entrance to the firefly park (5 minute walk from the main road where you get off the bus). As you will do the tour after dinner, it is not easy to take the bus back to KL so you should then stay over for the night at one of the basic accommodations available in Kuala Selangor. You can also use a taxi to get to Kuala Selangor; but beware that it will not be that easy to get a taxi back to KL (for a normal price) unless you make a deal up front with your driver. A normal one-way price would be around RM50. If you want the driver to wait for you, it will be much higher thathat.

If you like driving, you can rent a car from the car rental provider such as Mayflower, Europcar and others offering the services.Normally the rental fee is around RM150 for one day (pickup 2pm and return 2pm the next day). The 2nd time we went to the Firefly Park we rented a car with Rentalcars.com, for about RM120 per day. The way to Kuala Selangor from KLCC is not that difficult. Fastest option is by using the KL - Kuala Selangor Expressway (Latar) that takes you directly to Kuala Selangor in about 40 minutes. Alternativey you could take the old route; in that case you stick to Jalan Kuching, and then follow Kepong (on route 54). After a while, you will see signs to Kuala Selangor. From Kuala Selangor you should cross a big bridge and then follow the road to Pasir Penambang. At some point (after around 1 or 2 km), you will see the sign to go right to visit the Firefly Park. Follow the signs from then on. You will find the park at Jalan Haji Omar at approximately 9 kilometers from Kuala Selangor town. The drive back late at night is not that great if you are not used to driving at night in Malaysia; the roads are poorly lit and there can be quite some traffic. Once you reach Kuala Selangor again you can take the highway back to KL.

Address Firefly Park Kuala Selangor

Firefly Park Resort (Kuala Selangor) Sdn Bhd

Jalan Haji Omar, Kampung Bukit Belimbing,

45000 Kuala Selangor,

Selangor Darul Ehsan, Malaysia.

Tel: 603-3260 1208 / Fax: 603-3260 1234

Restaurant Mobile: 6019- 669 1398

GPS: 3.38119,101.281557