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Neat observation!
Flourescence has been shown in Hemidactylus (which this specimen looks like) as well as other geckoes:
https://www.researchgate.net/publication/351916062_Biofluorescence_in_the_Sri_Lankan_House_Gecko_Hemidactylus_parvimaculatus
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how fun! i need to try putting a blacklight on the ones around me to see if anything happens
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Getting a UV light has been a game changer for me. Though not really so much in the way of reptiles here to expose, but it does make several species of arachnid pop out a lot more.
like this cute uliodon https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/97333820
Harvestmen like this algidia viridata have become so much easier to find with the light https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/93672002
and pristobunus acentrus I have ONLY found with uv https://www.inaturalist.org/observations/89163846
Hope to keep seeing what the UV reveals, and also look forward to testing it in other countries with different types of species when the world resumes.
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This is a non-amphibian person talking. Is there any danger to exposing them to UV light? It’s done for moths all the time, but just wondering. I really don’t know!
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Geckos are reptiles, not amphibians.
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I’ve noticed shed snake skins fluoresce slightly. I wonder if that is common for reptile scales, in general?
OK. My mistake, but I don’t know them either. Question still remains - does the UV light cause eye damage?
as far as i can tell, gecko vision has 3 wavelength peaks – 520nm (green), 470nm (blue), and 365nm (ultraviolet A). the UV light used here appears to be one that peaks at 395nm (just at the edge of human vision but well within the range of gecko vision). (i think the dark eyes in these photos shows that they are absorbing the UV light.) so i’m thinking the gecko should be able to see the light, and not being restrained, should be able to respond to protect itself, as needed.
it’s probably never a great idea to go shining bright lights directly in eyes if you can avoid it, but i doubt that what’s depicted here is going to cause any significant / permanent damage for this gecko. (but that’s just my guess.)
also, just for reference, lizards kept in captivity often need / get supplemental UV A and B light. i doubt that the output from this UV flashlight would end up being much more than that provided by supplemental lighting or by natural sunlight.
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I would second this. As long as you avoid close range and prolonged exposure, I would think that it is ok.
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Thank you. As you may be able to tell, I’m not all that vertebrate aware!
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