Friday

Check in to the manor house anytime after 12:30 pm

1:30 pm Welc0me to Tremper Mound and the Manor House, your fellow registrants, and orientation to the weekend

2:30 pm Indoor Presentation: The Natural History of Fireflies – A World View. We will share a worldly and a local perspective of this specialized group of charismatic insects who have so effectively harnessed the power of light. Introducing the natural history, diversity, and ecology of fireflies.

4:00 pm Break and dinner on your own in the town of Portsmouth or West Portsmouth

8:30 pm Optional: Historical Tour of Tremper Mound. By Elijah Crabtree. Meet at the Manor House.

9:30 pm Friday Night Firefly Watching at the Manor House. Meet at the Manor House.

Saturday

9 am Breakfast at the Manor House

11:30 am Learning to Indentify Fireflies - Now is the time we untangle the radiance of light into the separate species that contribute to the illumination of the night. You will learn how to identify the many species of fireflies that unfold in seasonal progression, and how to tell the species apart by flash patterns and anatomy.

12:15 pm Lunch at the Manor House

1::15 pm Afternoon Hike in Pursuit of the “Dark” Fireflies - Explore the paradox of the lanternless day-flying fireflies - the paradoxical Lucidota and Pyropogas fireflies. These diminutive, yet beautiful beetles will fundamentally change your understanding of the complex firefly world. We will also be looking for the chrysalis of fireflies - our quintessential glow-worms - poised to emerge from their final instar to join the theater of light! We will be car-caravaning to the trailhead.

8:00 pm Saturday Night Firefly Watching at Gladys Riley. Meet at the Manor House and we will head out to a new Arc preserve know for its dazzling displays.

Sunday

9 am Breakfast at the Manor House

10 am Review of Firefly Identification, Phenology, and Natural History

11:30 “The Discovering the Enigmatic Blue Ghost Firefly in Ohio” - A Story Presented by Matthew Speights - This is a special opportunity to hear the talented Cincinnati-based Naturalist, Matthew Speights, recall his seemingly improbable discovery of the extremely rare Blue Ghost Firefly (Phausis reticulata) in Southwestern Ohio. This enigmatic firefly with its steady, eerie blue glow, is only known from a handful of sites in the Southern Appalachians. Never before has the Blue Ghost been found within Ohio’s borders… Until now!

12:15 Lunch and Depart for home.