{"id":8743,"date":"2026-07-02T07:44:00","date_gmt":"2026-07-02T07:44:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/bioclockconsortium.org\/uncategorized\/what-glow-worms-teach-us-about-darkness\/"},"modified":"2026-07-02T07:52:58","modified_gmt":"2026-07-02T07:52:58","slug":"what-glow-worms-teach-us-about-darkness","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/bioclockconsortium.org\/en\/news\/what-glow-worms-teach-us-about-darkness\/","title":{"rendered":"What Glow-worms Teach Us About Darkness"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\"><em>The smallest lights can only be seen when it is truly dark. Unfortunately, genuine darkness has become increasingly difficult to find in the Netherlands. A recent article in de Volkskrant takes readers on a glow-worm expedition in Amsterdam\u2019s Vliegenbos, an initiative that helps raise awareness about the importance of darkness.  <\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Led by writer and BioClock partner Marjolijn van Heemstra, participants search for the faintly glowing beetles and discover the beauty hidden in the dark. The expedition also draws attention to a larger issue: light pollution. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-group is-nowrap is-layout-flex wp-container-core-group-is-layout-8f761849 wp-block-group-is-layout-flex\">\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">According to <a href=\"https:\/\/bioclockconsortium.org\/onderzoekers\/prof-dr-joke-h-meijer\/\">Joke Meijer<\/a>, founder of BioClock, light pollution disrupts our biological clock. A healthy day-night rhythm depends on sufficient daylight during the day and darkness at night. Disruptions to this natural rhythm can contribute to health problems such as cardiovascular disease, obesity, and sleep disorders. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-image size-large\"><img data-recalc-dims=\"1\" loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"1024\" height=\"680\" src=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bioclockconsortium.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Jaanimardikas_emane.jpg?resize=1024%2C680&#038;ssl=1\" alt=\"\u00a9 Kadri Niinsalu ( CC BY-SA 3.0 Wikimedia Commons)\" class=\"wp-image-8738\" srcset=\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bioclockconsortium.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Jaanimardikas_emane-scaled.jpg?resize=1024%2C680&amp;ssl=1 1024w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bioclockconsortium.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Jaanimardikas_emane-scaled.jpg?resize=300%2C199&amp;ssl=1 300w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bioclockconsortium.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Jaanimardikas_emane-scaled.jpg?resize=768%2C510&amp;ssl=1 768w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bioclockconsortium.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Jaanimardikas_emane-scaled.jpg?resize=1536%2C1020&amp;ssl=1 1536w, https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/bioclockconsortium.org\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/Jaanimardikas_emane-scaled.jpg?resize=2048%2C1360&amp;ssl=1 2048w\" sizes=\"(max-width: 1000px) 100vw, 1000px\" \/><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Nature and ecosystems also suffer from light pollution. Insects such as glow-worms depend on darkness for reproduction, and artificial light is believed to play a role in their decline. Even the growth patterns of trees and plants can be affected.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Through initiatives such as night walks and local projects, Van Heemstra aims to rekindle our \u201clove of darkness.\u201d The article demonstrates why this is so important: in one of the most brightly lit countries in the world, true darkness has become a rare commodity.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"wp-block-paragraph\">Read the full article <a href=\"https:\/\/www.volkskrant.nl\/binnenland\/op-glimwormexpeditie-om-de-liefde-voor-de-duisternis-aan-te-wakkeren-houden-mijn-ogen-me-voor-de-gek~ba2c6caf\/\">here<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>The smallest lights can only be seen when it is truly dark. Unfortunately, genuine darkness has become increasingly difficult to find in the Netherlands. A recent article in de Volkskrant takes readers on a glow-worm expedition in Amsterdam\u2019s Vliegenbos, an initiative that helps raise awareness about the importance of darkness. Led by writer and BioClock [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":8737,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[32],"tags":[170,169,196,197,190,198],"class_list":["post-8743","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-news","tag-article","tag-bioclock-2","tag-darkness","tag-glow-worm","tag-nacht","tag-volkskrant"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.9 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>What Glow-worms Teach Us About Darkness - BioClock<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/bioclockconsortium.org\/en\/news\/what-glow-worms-teach-us-about-darkness\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"What Glow-worms Teach Us About Darkness - BioClock\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The smallest lights can only be seen when it is truly dark. Unfortunately, genuine darkness has become increasingly difficult to find in the Netherlands. A recent article in de Volkskrant takes readers on a glow-worm expedition in Amsterdam\u2019s Vliegenbos, an initiative that helps raise awareness about the importance of darkness. 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