‍Every summer, the twinkling fireflies flying among trees in the mountainous areas or parks in southern Chinese cities is such a decoration of evening scene.

But professors have been worried that the creature might die out due to a deteriorating environment and a sizeable domestic market for them as gifts and decorations.

Efforts have been made to protect the creature, such as cracking down on commercial use of fireflies, setting up eco-tourism sites for the insects, and trying artificial breeding of the bugs.