{{About|the glow of certain forest fungi}} {{Distinguish|Firefox}} {{Short description|Fungal bioluminescence}} {| style="float:right;" |- | | |[[File:PanellusStipticusAug12 2009.jpg|thumb|''Panellus stipticus'', Mt. Vernon, Wisconsin (long exposure)]] |- | | |[[File:Omphalotus olearius 33857.jpg|thumb|right|''Omphalotus olearius'']]
[[File:Omphalotus nidiformis lawson lightoff email.jpg|thumb|right|''Omphalotus nidiformis'', glowing in the dark]]
[[File:PanellusStipticusAug12 2009 Animated.gif|thumb|right|Artificial fill light contrasts against the natural glow.]] |}
'''Foxfire''', also called '''fairy fire''' and '''chimpanzee fire''',<ref>{{cite episode |title=Congo |series=Africa |network=BBC One |date=January 16, 2013|url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p013tzmw}}</ref> is the bioluminescence created by some species of fungi present in decaying wood. The bluish-green glow is attributed to a luciferase, an oxidative enzyme, which emits light as it reacts with a luciferin. The phenomenon has been known since ancient times, with its source determined in 1823.
== Description == Foxfire is the bioluminescence created by some species of fungi present in decaying wood. It occurs in a number of species, including ''Panellus stipticus'', ''Omphalotus olearius'' and ''Omphalotus nidiformis''. The bluish-green glow is attributed to luciferin, which emits light after oxidation catalyzed by the enzyme luciferase. Some believe that the light attracts insects to spread spores, or acts as a warning to hungry animals, like the bright colors exhibited by some poisonous or unpalatable animal species.<ref name="inamidst">{{cite web|url=http://inamidst.com/lights/foxfire|title=Foxfire:Bioluminescent Fungi|publisher=inamidst.com|access-date=July 18, 2011}}</ref> Although generally very dim, in some cases foxfire is bright enough to read by.<ref name="mykoweb">{{cite web|url=http://www.mykoweb.com/articles/BioluminescentFungi.html|title=Bioluminescent Fungi|publisher=Mykoweb|access-date=July 18, 2011}}</ref>
==History== The oldest recorded documentation of foxfire is from 382 B.C., by Aristotle,<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Lee |first1=J |title=Bioluminescence: the First 3000 Years (Review) |journal=Journal of Siberian Federal University. Biology |date=2008 |volume=1 |issue=3 |pages=194–205|doi=10.17516/1997-1389-0264 |doi-access=free }}</ref> whose notes refer to a light that, unlike fire, was cold to the touch. The Roman thinker Pliny the Elder also mentioned glowing wood in olive groves.<ref name="warnell">{{cite web| publisher=Warnell School of Forest Resources| title=Foxfire: Bioluminescence in the Forest| access-date=July 18, 2011| url=http://warnell.forestry.uga.edu/service/library/index.php3?docID=173| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110719224836/http://warnell.forestry.uga.edu/service/library/index.php3?docID=173| archive-date=July 19, 2011}}</ref>
Foxfire was used to illuminate the needles on the barometer and the compass of ''Turtle'', an early submarine.<ref>{{cite web| publisher=Navy Department Library| title=The Submarine Turtle: Naval Documents of the Revolutionary War| access-date=May 1, 2012| url=http://www.history.navy.mil/library/online/sub_turtle.htm| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080917024301/http://www.history.navy.mil/library/online/sub_turtle.htm| url-status=dead| archive-date=September 17, 2008}}</ref> This is commonly thought to have been suggested by Benjamin Franklin; a reading of the correspondence from Benjamin Gale, however, shows that Benjamin Franklin was only consulted for alternative forms of lighting when the cold temperatures rendered the foxfire inactive.
After many more literary references to foxfire by early scientists and naturalists, its cause was discovered in 1823. The glow emitted from wooden support beams in mines was examined, and it was found that the luminescence came from fungal growth.<ref>{{cite web| publisher=Journey Idea| title=Bioluminescent foxfire, Bioluminescence facts, Bioluminescent fungi| access-date=July 18, 2011| url=http://www.journeyidea.com/firefox-that-glows| archive-date=September 24, 2013| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130924094622/http://www.journeyidea.com/firefox-that-glows| url-status=dead}}</ref>
The "fox" in ''foxfire'' may derive from the Old French word {{wikt-lang|fro|faux}}, meaning "false", rather than from the name of the animal.<ref>Smythe Palmer, Abram, ''The Folk and Their Word-lore: An Essay on Popular Etymologies'' (1904)</ref>
==See also== * Aurora Borealis, called "revontulet" (literally "foxfires") in the Finnish language * List of bioluminescent fungi * Will-o'-the-wisp
==References== {{Reflist}}
==External links== {{Wiktionary}} * [https://web.archive.org/web/20110719224836/http://warnell.forestry.uga.edu/service/library/index.php3?docID=173 Foxfire: Bioluminescence in the Forest] [https://web.archive.org/web/20130507020951/http://warnell.forestry.uga.edu/service/library/for99-021/for99-021.pdf PDF file] by Dr. Kim D. Coder, University of Georgia 8/99 <!-- would be a great source to expand this article --> * [http://www.mykoweb.com/articles/BioluminescentFungi.html Bioluminescent Fungi] at Mykoweb
Category:Bioluminescence Category:Bioluminescent fungi Category:Mycology Category:Fungi in folklore