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Evening Fireflies Sighting

“They appear and immediately capture all the attention, lighting up the darkness, brighten up the night, Move vivid ancient dances, Unconsciously enchanting, small & majestic, Naive & Strong, like the Fireflies.” Stefania Rivoltini

Overview of the Evening Fireflies Sighting

Mystical Fireflies is an evening tour program to the countryside coastal town of Kuala Selangor. A first stop to visit Batu Cave Hindu Temple. The drive then continues for about an hour to the countryside small town of Kuala Selangor nestled by the shoreline of the Selangor state.

Get to know a unique species of ‘Silvered Leaf’ monkeys the permanent resident here in Bukit Melawati while overlooking the sundown across the horizon of the famous Malacca Straits sea. Try out a local Chinese seafood dinner by the river restaurant & finally onboard a boat to witness the mystical ‘Fireflies’ or lightning bugs.

About the Fireflies or Lightning Beetle/Bug

Adult firefly
Berembang trees along riverbanks in Selangor coastal area.
During larva stage

Kelip-Kelip (Fireflies)

‘Kelip-Kelip‘ is the name called by the local Malay or Fireflies– one of the beetle family and here in Kuala Selangor specifically are from ‘Pteroptyx tener‘ species. Kuala Selangor firefly colony, in particular, may be one of the most significant firefly colonies in the world.

The life cycle of the firefly “Pteroptyx tener “begins with eggs that adult females lay in crevices or loose soil on the ground in the tidal flood plains of the river. A tiny larva hatches from each egg. Resembling small centipedes that only have three pairs of legs. The newly hatched larva is only about 2mm in length. Whitish and translucent in the early stage and gradually became darker as they consume food and grow. This larva can also produce light however they do not flash continuously, instead it turns on and off at will.

The larva feed on small snails that abundantly occur in their habitat. The most common species found along the riverbank here is ‘Cyclotropis carinata’. Relatively small in size about 7mm. The larva will become active at night, upon discovering a snail, the larva will pursue it and pierce the snail’s soft skin with its sharp jaws, injecting a toxin into its prey. the larva then sucks out the liquified tissues of the snails.

After approximately two weeks, the larva undergoes a moulting process in which it sheds its skin for a larger one to enable it to grow. The larva will dig a mud hole and curl up inside it, reappearing only after it has moulted and when its new skin has sufficiently hardened. The larva will undergo this process several times before the final time to pupate.

During this stage of dormant or inactive, it undergoes a morphological and physiological transformation into an adult firefly, which eventually emerges from the pupal case in the ground and takes to flight. The lifespan of a firefly is not known with certainty, adults may only live a few weeks, but the complete lifecycle of a firefly is thought to be around 7 to 8 months.

Batu Caves

After you are fetched from your hotel, a short 20min drive to Batu Caves is the first stop. Batu Caves is the biggest Hindu temple and one of the must-see and visit attractions in Kuala Lumpur. We shall spend about 45min to an hour here.

Lord Murugan statue standing tall in Batu Caves
bukit melawati
Lighthouse atop Bukit Melawati
Guest mingle with the silvered leaf monkeys

Bukit Melawati, Kuala Selangor

A historical site, once a stronghold fort of the Selangor state Sultanate back in 1782-1826 during the reign of the second sultan of Selangor, Sultan Ibrahim. The fort fell to the Dutch in 1784, however, after a year, the sultan recapture it back in January 1785 with the aid of Pahang. Here travellers could enjoy a scenic view from the hill overlooking the Straits of Malacca while being introduced to a unique species of the ‘silvered-leaf’ monkeys.

silvered leaf monkeys
Notice the orange baby silvered leaf

Dinner at Fishermen Wharf

Try out a set dinner of local Chinese-style seafood dishes at this fishermen’s village.

Scenic sunset view from the restaurant
Beloved guest enjoying dinner
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