Mexico's magical firefly show

Visitors are flocking to the rural woodlands of central Mexico, hoping to bask in the glow of thousands of fireflies

Fireflies in the woods of Piedra Canteada
(Image credit: The Associated Press)
Julianne McShane
By Julianne McShane
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(Image credit: (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)It doesn't last long, but the seasonal spectacle of thousands of fireflies frenetically glowing against the encroaching darkness will linger in one's mind long aft)

(Image credit: (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)Piedra Canteada is a rural camp cooperative, owned and run by 42 local families, in the Nanacamilpa village in Tlaxcala, the country's smallest state.Typically, co)

(Image credit: (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)In 1990, the co-op attempted to create a more reliable revenue stream by charging campers to use parts of its sprawling 1,500 acres of land. And in the decades tha)

(Image credit: (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell))

(Image credit: (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)Today, Piedra Canteada's firefly business is booming. The co-op welcomes 50,000 tourists annually, with many visitors traveling from Mexico City for the weekend. I)

(Image credit: (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell)The firefly business has been so successful for the Piedra Canteada co-op that it has been able to shift efforts away from deforestation to focus on tourism, repor)

(Image credit: (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell))

(Image credit: (AP Photo/Rebecca Blackwell))

Julianne McShane
Julianne McShane

Julianne McShane is a student at New York University in the Global Liberal Studies program. She has interned at The Week, The Improper Bostonian, and NBC News. She plans to pursue a career in journalism after graduating.

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