Fireflies can be captured with a Bug Net by pressing the "Do Action" button (Spacebar by default) when nearby. Because they do not respawn, they are considered a finite resource. Under certain situations (PC) it may not be possible to catch the fireflies with the "Do Action" button whilst you are near them and they are not emiting light. Therefore use a torch or setup a campfire nearby, change to the bug net to click on them using the mouse to walk up and catch them.
Standing in Firefly light resets the timer in which Charlie will attack during the night, though the light from Fireflies will disappear until the player leaves their vicinity. If the player does not have a source of fire, that player may walk into and out of a group Fireflies for survival during the night. This can still be dangerous, as Sanity will drop significantly.
Releasing Fireflies near a Fire Pit or other key locations in one's base camp might come in handy, as glowing light will indicate their positions in total darkness of the night.
Fireflies on the ground will take up space, so the player is unable to build in that spot unless they are caught.
Downloadable Content
In the Reign of Giants DLC, Fireflies are found abundantly in Deciduous Forest Biomes, making it one of their natural habitats.
In the Shipwrecked DLC, Fireflies are found in Jungle Biomes and do not appear during Hurricane Season. Fireflies are also used to craft the Boat Lantern. There is a small chance that fireflies can be obtained from a slot machine, thus making fireflies renewable.
In the Hamlet DLC, Fireflies can be found in Rainforest and Deep Rainforest Biomes. Fireflies will appear at dusk if the player is under the canopies of Deep Rainforest and Gas Rainforest.
Usage
Trivia
Before mid-June 2014, Fireflies were included in the drop table for Tumbleweed.[1]
Fireflies can be caught during the daytime, they only become invisible but remain present at the same place. The player can wield a Net, then press the action button when close enough to their location. Unless there is a closer object that can be interacted with, Fireflies will be caught even if they are not visible. This has been fixed in Shipwrecked and Shipwrecked compatible worlds.
Gallery
Fireflies at night while it is snowing.
Lower-left: 1 Firefly. Upper-left: 40 Fireflies dropped individually. Right: 40 Fireflies dropped by breaking a Chest.
Fireflies placed around a base camp to indicate features.
Attention: The following categories are only for the players look up the page based on their first impression, they have nothing to do with the actual categories/behavior/function/tags of these items
Attention: The following categories are only for the players look up the page based on their first impression, they have nothing to do with the actual categories/behavior/function/tags of these creatures
Attention: The following categories are only for the players look up the page based on their first impression, they have nothing to do with the actual categories/behavior/function/tags of these creatures
Attention: The following categories are only for the players look up the page based on their first impression, they have nothing to do with the actual categories/behavior/function/tags of these creatures
Attention: The following categories are only for the players look up the page based on their first impression, they have nothing to do with the actual categories/behavior/function/tags of these Mobs