What light spectrum can BPs see

I figure this would be an interesting subject to discuss since this doesn't come up too often and I personally haven't seen anything in regards to this.

I found a study that was done specifically on ball python's vision. It's a PDF file. Check it out:
http://jeb.biologists.org/cgi/reprin...6vxowj421RqPzw

If you have any other information you'd like to add, please do so.

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From that article, just from the summary alone we know BP's can see with just their eyes, from Red, all the way to Ultraviolet. In addition to their pits, they can sense Infra-Red as well. I'd say they probably see better than we do.

Here's a photo of the summary just for fun ;)

http://img.tapatalk.com/d/14/01/19/atuzu6yt.jpg

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umm, its a bit weird.


so they have one very common receptor (rods) with a detection maximum at 494 nm, thats blue, bordering on green.

then they have cones. one kind at 551 nm, thats green. and one more rare kind at 380 nm, thats really surprising. thats ultraviolet, and its pretty much at the border of what humans can see when it comes to ultraviolets.

so their lines are extremely sensitive in blue (close to green), with some green, and a little bit of UV, and its hard UV, at the limit of what humans can see. no red, orange, or yellow. really weird, i guess its tuned for night vision.

when it comes to seeing the world in nice colors, these receptors are really bad choices. but at night it makes sense. when you want to make the most out of the little light you get at night, these receptors make sense. they also make sense when you want to watch the blue sky. and that rare receptor for ultraviolet would certainly be useful when you want to find a basking spot that is rich in ultraviolet.

if i could choose my receptors, i would not choose blue, green and ultraviolet. flowers and fruits look boring, blood looks black. but for a nocturnal reptile it somehow makes sense.

Since our BPs use both photoreceptors and thermoreceptors to hunt as well as find prey and obviously see better at night, I wonder if pickier eaters would have a better feeding response with little to no light.

I think someone should do a feeding experiment for two months and share their results. Obviously, there's a lot of other factors that would effect feedings but it could still be interesting.

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The Serpent Merchant has done light-behavior studies with his snakes. He altered different kinds and colored bulbs over time.

I always turn off the lights when my snakes feed. They do tend to feed better than with the lights on, which is why I do so.

People have also observed that a pickier BP is more willing to eat at night than during the day as well.

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oh, and, if you want a night light....


the study makes it quite clear that they are virtually blind to red or orange, and most likely they cannot even see yellow. so unless the red also contains thermal radiation / infrared, like when its a red LED that does not get warm, they should not be able to see it.

I know this is irrelevant as it's to deers but I was watching some show that explained that deers are blind in human terms. They can hear very well and smell very well. When a deer perks it's head up, it slaps it's foot on the ground to see if anything jumps and also it's to get the other deers attention in the area as it's showing them that there is something it doesn't like in the area. Then once the white tail goes up, it's the sign to head out. I don't hunt so I found this to be pretty neat.

Also you know that a buck makes a doe cross the road first? I did not know this either until my dad told me yesterday.

What a awesome pdf

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