only a keen eye can detect the greenish colour: at first sight the flash appears yellow as the flame of a wood-fire, and its vivid brightness has not been over- praised in the following hokku:—
Kagaribi mo
Hotaru mo hikaru
Genji kana!
"Whether it be a glimmering of festal-fires [far away], or a glimmering of fireflies, [one can hardly tell]—ah, it is the Genji!"
Although the appellations Genji-botara and Heike-botaru are still in general use, both insects are known by other folk-names. In different provinces the Genji is called Ō-botaru, or "Great Firefly"; Ushi-botaru, or "Ox-Firefly"; Kuma-botaru, or "Bear-Firefly"; and Uji-botaru, or "Firefly of Uji,—not to mention such picturesque appellations as Komusō-botaru and Yamabuki-botaru, which could not be appreciated by the average Western reader. The Heike-botaru is also called Hime-botaru, or "Princess-Firefly"; Nennei-botaru, or "Baby-Firefly"; and Yūrei-botaru, or "Ghost-Firefly." But these are only examples chosen at random: in almost every part of Japan there is a special folk-name for the insect.
