Fireflies in Kuala Selangor

   THE fireflies colony in Kuala Selangor needs no introduction but one has to see them to understand how beautiful they are.  Nothing is more breathtaking than the sight of millions of fireflies  on the berembang trees, stretching a few kilometres along the riverbank.  Flashing in synchrony, fireflies are found in abundance in the Mangrove  (Berembang) trees, along the lower reaches of Selangor River.

   Your drive to Kuala Selangor taken approximately 1.5 hours and on arrival  you visit Bukit Melawati where Fort Altingsburg is located. The hilltop  is crowned by a lighthouse and tall beautiful shady trees a haven for local  birds, silvered leaf monkeys and long tail macaques.

   At dusk you drive across the bridge over the Selangor River for a seafood  dinner at the fishing Village. After dinner you take a 15 minutes drive to  a Malay Village, where you board a typical Malay 5-seater wooden row boat (Sampan). Life jackets are provided and the boatmen would row us  along the river.

   Here, millions of fireflies present us with a dazzling display of lights flickering in synchrony that resemble twinkling electric lights on a Christmas tree.

   Studies have shown that male fireflies flash three times per second, while the female-emitting a glow of lesser intensity flash only once in three seconds. Only male fireflies flash in synchrony. We spend a few wonderful minutes  beside these trees, marveling at the wonder of nature before returning to the jetty and heading for Kuala Lumpur.

   Dress casually and bring along rain gear on wet days. Departures might be cancelled if there is too much rain the coastal area.