Britannica
Sources used in this answer
Which groups of organisms can produce bioluminescent light?
Created from Britannica articles
using AI.
AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.
Bioluminescence
Time-lapse image of fireflies in the Catskill Mountains, New York. Firefly light is a cold light, with approximately 100 percent of the energy given off as light and only a minute amount as heat. Only light in the visible spectrum is emitted.
Bioluminescence is a chemical reaction that produces light within a wide variety of organisms, primarily in marine environments. It is important to note that while bioluminescence is found in many diverse groups, it is not known to exist naturally in true plants, amphibians, reptiles, birds, or mammals.123
Organisms capable of producing bioluminescent light include:
- Bacteria: Many marine species, such as Vibrio and Photobacterium, are bioluminescent and sometimes live symbiotically within the light organs of other animals.3
- Protists: This group includes many bioluminescent species, most notably the microscopic dinoflagellates that cause glowing wakes in the ocean.13
- Fungi: Certain species, often referred to as foxfire, grow on decaying wood and emit light ranging from yellow to green.3
- Animals: Bioluminescence occurs in nearly half of all animal phyla, including:
- Marine Invertebrates: This includes jellyfish, ctenophores (comb jellies), crustaceans (such as copepods and ostracods), annelids, mollusks (including squids), and tunicates.3
- Insects: Well-known examples include fireflies, click beetles, and certain dipterans (true flies).3
- Fish: Many deep-sea fish, such as anglerfish, lantern fish, and hatchetfish, utilize bioluminescence for hunting, defense, or communication.134
- Myriapods: Certain centipedes and millipedes are also known to be bioluminescent.3