Mount Tamberine is home to a species of glow worm, which we did think about trying to find in the wild last night, but the lure of the camp fire was just too great. It’s a good job that we didn’t, as people fumbling around in the dark and shining torches trying to see them have caused numbers to decrease. So, taking the easy, and environmentally sound option we visited the glow worm caves of a local winery. Inside there were about 15000 glowing bottoms of a fly larvae, each trying to catch a fly or two. After up to 12 months feeding as a larvae, the fly has about a week to mate and lay eggs – that’s some preparation.
From a tourist perspective, the pitch black cave was peppered with tiny green dots, and as eyes adjusted it was like the night sky, which is a good thing as that’s what attracts the flies!
Photos weren’t allowed, so the true to life representation from the leaflet is attached, and I’ll leave you with the glow worm ditty:
I wish I was a glow-worm
a glow-worm’s never glum
‘cos how can you be grumpy
when the sun shines out your bum!