Fluorescence in mammals is a much more common property than previously thought. This has been revealed by a revolutionary study published in the journal Royal Society Open Science that has thoroughly investigated 125 different species and concluded that the vast majority possessed this characteristic.
Specifically, of these 107 (86%) had this luminous property, which until very recently was considered typical of Australian marsupials such as platypuses, wombats, Tasmanian devils and echidnas and not something as widespread in other species as has been discovered.
The researchers found that fluorescence was more common and intense among nocturnal species, but it was also present in diurnal animals, which are active during the day, such as the mountain zebra and the polar bear, and they found that their fur glowed under ultraviolet light.
Kenny Travouillon, curator of mammalogy at the Western Australian Museum and lead author of the study, explains it this way: “We didn’t know that so many mammals had shiny skin or fur. “UV light hits the hair or skin and the proteins… shift the light into the visible range and appear blue or green, or even red.”
What the study has not revealed is the objective of fluorescence in mammals, although the scientists who have investigated it maintain that it could serve to “improve visual signaling, especially for nocturnal species” or “a way to recognize themselves within their own species.”
Although it may seem strange, even humans have fluorescent properties in their teeth and nails, also confirming that within mammals there is a great variety of ways in which this capacity is manifested.
