I'm glad you found it informative. I thought the concept of fluorescent bones was really cool. A very interesting ornamentation.
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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.