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Land Animals
Bioluminescence is not as common on land as it is in the sea. Most people, however, are familiar with the firefly, a winged insect that glows in the dark. According to the National Geographic website, the blinking pattern that fireflies emit is an optical signal that helps the insect find potential mates. Bioluminescent glowworms belong to the same family as the firefly, but are incapable of flight. Other terrestrial organisms that glow in the dark include click beetles, a small number of centipede and millipede species, and a tropical land snail called Quantula striata.
Fish
Bioluminescence is a particularly useful tool in the dark depths of the ocean. Forty-five percent of fish that live at depths below 300 meters have some light emitting organs, says the Earth Life website. Within the bathypelagic zone, located between depths of 1,000 and 4,000 meters, 75 percent of all fish use some form of bioluminescence. The anglerfish is a prime example of ocean bioluminescence. It has a forward-facing appendage that glows in the dark, attracting prey into the vicinity of its wide-open jaws. The flashlight fish also uses bioluminescence to attract prey, emitting light from two organs beneath its eyes. Some species, such as the cookie-cutter shark, use bioluminescence as camouflage. The belly of the shark glows to match the light from the sky above, hiding it from predators below. This process is known as counter-illumination.
Cephalopods
Bioluminescence is common among cephalopods such as squid and cuttlefish. According to the Biology at Davidson website, 63 out of the 100 genera contain species with this capability. A squid can produce green and blue light, allowing it to camouflage itself at various depths and light levels by using counterillumination.
Other Marine Organisms
The ocean is home to many other examples of bioluminescence. Crustaceans living on the ocean floor use light to communicate, glowing when it is time to mate. About 50 percent of jellyfish are also bioluminescent, says the Scripps Institution of Oceanography website. In the correct conditions, microorganisms such as dinoflagellates, a type of marine plankton, can cause the water to glow. Bioluminescent bacteria within the sea can also cause glowing waters, a phenomenon known as milky seas.
Fungi
A reaction between enzymes and other chemicals causes some species of fungi to glow in the dark. This phenomenon, known traditionally as foxfire, occurs when fungi interacts with rotting wood or leaf-covered ground. Species of fungi known to create foxfire include the appropriately named Jack O'Lantern mushroom and ghost fungus.