What light spectrum can BPs see

[Pythonfriend]

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.