Well, this is a new one. Nature is keeping the scientist busy as it continues to give one clue to the puzzle now and then. Glowing bones? Who would've thought, here I am assuming it is only the skin that changes colour as a sort of their survival strategies of blending into the environment to avoid detection by predators. Now bringing mating/ some kind of coded communication to the equation now adds more to the equation.
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Life is both simple and exceedingly complex. Often both at the same time. The more we understand the more complicated things become as the more strands of the web become visible.
And boom! You nailed it
"The more we understand the more complicated things become as the more strands of the web become visible"
A piece of great, much quoted, philosophy came from the lips an elder of the Duwamish tribe of native americans. Chief Seattle allegedly said;
"Humans did not weave the web of life. We are but a strand upon it. Whatever we do to the web, we do to ourselves"
In terms of science, and the arena of quantum science in particular, this is surely becoming more and more evident?
Loved, and learned, from the article, thanks muchly for sharing it⭐️
I'm glad you found it informative. I thought the concept of fluorescent bones was really cool. A very interesting ornamentation.
Cool??? It's just the darndest thing to know about! I have been cogitating on this all day (I do this a lot!) and maybe the reason they have amazing fluorescent bones is linked to the colourchanging exterior of the beast?
As within...so without?
I also remembered reading about the regenerative properties that chameleons have. If their tail is lost to a predator, for example, they will often regrow a new one. Which has HUGE implcations for medical sceinces and is being investigated by several major companies and universities.
More on this in the link...
https://www.scientificamerican.com/article/how-do-chameleons-regener/
I am curious though about why nature, in all its seemingly random wisdom, would give fluorescent bones to chameleons, or if you prefer, why would they evolve a glow in the dark skeletal structure, if its only purpose is, as you suggest, ornamental?
Is it possible that a chameleon's inner glow will attract it a better mate for example?
There are a couple of creatures that can do this. For instance the Axolotl.
Fluorescence isn't glow in the dark per say, as in that case most people think of like a glow in the dark ball or sticker:
Like that one.
That is phosphorescence, not fluorescence.
Fluorescence is when a higher energy lights energy is used and released as a lower energy light. Its what happens when something glows under a black light (a UV light). This is what is happening with the chameleon, the bones get excited by UV light and glow. Its not an "inner glow" ... as if the animal were producing the light.
Might make it easier in the forest, where UV can permeate but normal light not so well.
The more we know, the more we realise how much we don't know. The great irony of life.