Introduces creatures that produce their own light, including the flashlight fish, the firefly, and fungi. Includes a pull out glow in the dark poster of the luminous creatures of the sea.

Why be afraid of the dark when there is so much to see? W.H. Beck brings the glowing world of bioluminescence to light in this young non-fiction picture book illustrated with stunning photographs.

Glow-in-the-dark creatures possess one of the most amazing abilities in our world. Using only chemicals in their bodies, they can create bioluminescence, or "living light." The lights they produce come in an astonishing variety of colors and patterns. Glow-in-the-dark creatures use their light displays to hide from enemies, to cry for help, to warn of danger, or to find a mate. It is a beautiful silent language. From fireflies and glowworms to flashlight fish and velvet belly lantern sharks, the diversity and number of creatures who are bioluminescent have surprised scientists. They have found bioluminescent creatures who flit across the night sky, creep along the shadowy ground, float in moonless oceans and swim in the deepest, darkest parts of the sea.

What do giant squids, mantis shrimp, and fireflies have in common? These animals, along with a wide range of creatures, are able to give off light; this is called bioluminescence. Different species use different chemistries to bioluminesce, and they produce their light for a variety of reasons, including communication, hunting, and self-defense. Bioluminescence is a unique and fascinating adaptation found in the animal kingdom. Surprisingly, about half of all known phyla (a classification for animals that share the same body type) contain some bioluminescent species. Scientists don't yet understand all facets of bioluminescence, but they have managed to harness the glow and use it in a myriad of ways. One of the most important applications involves using bioluminescence as a microscope in medical studies. For example, laboratory scientists can create fluorescent malaria parasites to track the path by which the disease is spread from a mosquito to the animal it bites. Bioluminescent proteins are also helping researchers learn more about cancer, HIV and other viruses, and complex neurological processes. In fact, bioluminescent proteins are so useful to twenty-first-century medicine that two groups of scientists, one in 2008 and the other in 2014, were awarded the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for their work with these proteins and related technologies. Even artists and fashion designers use bioluminescence in their work to create glowing, light-sensitive paintings and clothing lines. Author Marc Zimmer, a world-renowned specialist in fluorescent proteins, takes readers on a glowing journey into the frontiers of bioluminescence.

Focusing on extraordinary stories from nature, making links with the human world and readers' own experiences this series will capture children's imaginations with lyrical prose, astonishing facts and wonderful illustrations. "It does an incredible job at explaining how things in nature actually glow despite all the different environments they may live in." —Oh The Books We Love Aimed at younger readers who are just starting to engage in non-fiction, these books will not only teach amazing animal facts but will relate them back to everyday scenarios so children can really connect with the content they're learning about. With more emphasis on topic specific children's non-fiction, and the popularity of more lyrical prose intertwined with stunning illustrations, this series of books is sure to be a hit with younger children who are just starting to learn about the world we live in and its amazing - and sometimes bizarre - plants and creatures.

Explains bioluminesence, introduces animals that produce their own light, and describes how it functions in creatures from glowworms and railroad worms to flashlight fish and centipedes.

"Glow in the dark special effects"--Cover.