Wombats, platypus and bilbies are biofluorescent
Do you know what’s common to platypus, wombats, bilbies and eastern barred bandicoots? Correct! They are all Australian animals and are nocturnal creatures. And we now know they are all also bioflourecent, that is, their fur glows under ultraviolet light.
Biofluorescene is the phenomenon whereby a substance, such as fur, absorbs light at one wavelength and emits it at a different wavelength. Common biofluorescent hues include green, red, orange, and blue. In just the last few years, scientists have discovered that several animals, including chameleons, corals, jellyfish, reef fish, sharks, scorpions, butterflies, sea turtles and even flying squirrels are biofluorescent. Though the reasons are unknown, theories include camouflage or communication between individuals of the same species.
The current discovery goes back to 2019, when scientists at Northland College in Ashland Wisconsin, found that flying squirrels emitted a pink glow under UV lights. Out of curiosity, they shone the UV light on platypus and other Australian animals. To their surprise, all of them lit up in different hues. They don’t know exactly why the fur glows.
Did you know?
Bioluminescence is another naturally occurring phenomenon, where organisms emit light due to a chemical reaction. It is observed in 76% of all marine life such as jellyfish, and a handful of terrestrial creatures such as glow worm.
Picture Credit : Google
