Entomologists are funny, just ask us!

Us entomologists don't really have that many jokes to tell. I still think "frass happens" is pretty good stuff. But this year at the ESA meeting in Reno, they had an insect-related limerick contest. There were many humorous and creative submissions - perhaps we are a funny society after all? The overall winner was Martha Lutz, who wrote a witty poem about fireflies:

Au Naturel Selection: Photinus meets Photuris
A firefly who was benighted
saw a light and became so excited–
he rushed to his fate
while selecting a mate:
lost his head, lost his heart, was de-lighted.

It's actually about an interaction between two firefly species. I encourage you to visit Bug Girl's blog that gives a bit more detail about insect mimicry and the deceptive nature of some fireflies.

Some female fireflies lure in males with false mating signals.  

Photo by J. E. Lloyd.