How one Hongkonger is lighting up the night skies, with fireflies
Development has robbed Hong Kong wildlife of much of its natural habitat, but one young man is fighting back with a remarkable firefly breeding programme, writes Elaine Yau
Who would have thought a holiday in Japan could be such a life changer? For former teacher Mark Mak Siu-fung, a trip six years ago to Kitakyushu in Fukuoka not only yielded fresh perspectives on life, it set him off on a new career as a firefly breeder and expert who is invited to conferences around the region. It has even brought him, in a roundabout fashion, his wife.
Mak, 29, has an abiding interest in green issues; so much so he headed for Kitakyushu in 2008 because the city was known for its effective management, with eco-friendly vehicles on the roads and treated waste used as compost in parks.
"I wanted to see for myself how a city went about its green planning," he says.
Whenever people think of fireflies in Hong Kong, they will think of me
It led to a vital encounter with Nakamura Mitsuo, an elderly consultant at Kitakyushu's firefly museum who he met while checking out its displays.
Although Mak did not speak Japanese, he and Mitsuo were able to communicate through written notes as the Japanese kanji are based on Chinese characters. The pair hit it off, and Mitsuo even put him up in his home for five days when it became clear that the backpacking Mak had limited funds.
As it turned out, Mitsuo was instrumental in setting up the museum. The streams near his home once drew plenty of fireflies as their larvae live in damp, dark areas. But as the city industrialised, effluent from steel plants polluted the waterways and firefly populations shrunk.
Mak was so inspired by Mitsuo's story that he decided to quit his job at a primary school and embark on a similar mission when he returned to Hong Kong.