UVA & UVB Differences
- Thread starter cigdoll
- Start date
Preekoo
Member
Yes, the Reptisun 5.0 coil/tube is recommended. Along with a heat lamp, a regular house hold bulb will suffice. anywhere between 45-60 watt, depends on the age of your guy. Dont fall for the pet store heat bulbs, biggest waste of $20 you'll ever see lol. I got 4 bulbs for 2 dolla's at wally wurld.
cigdoll
New Member
I'm thinking about buying the Zoo Med Repti Halogen Heat Lamp that generates heat and UVA, but no UVB. I'm confused on the differences besides the UVA generating longer wavelengths than UVB. So I guess the question is, will my Veiled be okay with UVA and no UVB if I were to just use the Zoo Med Repti Halogen?
Meow Kitty
New Member
red bulbs and black bulbs are to create light that doesnt affect nocturnal animals its not a waste, its just not one of chameleons needs
Preekoo
Member
That's what I thought but I had never owned any other animal that needed those specifically.
And UVB is ABSOLUTELY necessary, its so they can function their calcium intakes, which is the most essential vitamin for a chameleon. Or something along the lines of that, I'm not an expert...but you do need uvb
Sohumvet
Member
Chameleons need UVB light in order to produce Vitamin D3, which in turn is needed to absorb calcium. This is especially important for young growing animals to prevent metabolic bone disease. So to answer your question, yes, you need UVB and need more than just the Zoo Med Repti Halogen. If you are looking for an all in one source you need to use a Mercury Vapor Bulb. They produce UVA, UVB, and heat. Examples are the Zoo Med Powersun, Exoterra Solar Glo, and Fluker Sun Spot. They come in various wattages from 100 , 125, and 160 depending on the manufacturer.
Sohumvet
Member
You need both for the health and well being of your chameleon. Plus a heat bulb which can be a regular incandescent bulb.
Sohumvet
Member
Here is an excerpt from the Exoterra Lighting Guide
"It has been demonstrated that UVA can influence agonistic, reproductive, and signalling behaviours in reptiles. As reptiles can see into the UVA range (320-400 nm) it will affect the
way they see things. The colour of their food or their bodies will appear different in a reptile’s eye then the way we see it if exposed to UVA radiation. Signalling by exposing body parts (e.g. Anolis sp.) or changing colours (e.g. Chameleon sp.) is common in reptiles, these signals are perceived and also interpreted differently by reptiles if UVA radiation is absent. Failure to provide UVA to diurnal reptiles can cause stress by altering the reptile’s perception of its surroundings and how
it responds to it. This is crucial for breeding or keeping them around for the length of their natural life span."
Sohumvet
Member
Thank you Sohumvet! I now have a better idea of the differences between UVA and UVB!
Your welcome!
Sohumvet
Member
That's correct but incandescent and halogen lights produce only low amounts of UVA. The correlation is the more visible light produced the less UVA and vice versa. However, UVB bulbs also produce UVA so when combined with a halogen or incandescent bulb it provides sufficient UVA.
As usual, the best source for UVA, UVB, and heat is natural unfiltered sunlight(with shade available).
So true Sohumvet....
Just to add to that, here is an excerpt written by European Lighting expert
John Courteney-Smith:
John says
"Unlike humans, who have ‘trichromatic’ vision, enabling us to see only three primary colours - red, green and blue, we now know that many reptiles, amphibians and other species, have ‘tetrachromatic’ vision. This enables them to see the shorter UVA wavelengths (320-400 nm) of the spectrum that form a part of natural sunlight. Reds are redder and greens are greener – life without UV would be the equivalent of us seeing everything in black and white, only worse. This UVA, or fourth primary, can be critical for behaviour and even affect appetite. A reluctant feeder may need UVA light to stimulate its appetite. UVA is also needed to induce reproductive behaviour. Lizards have been found to possess ultra violet reflectance patterns on their skin, which indicate reproductive glands in particular. Female panther chameleons seek out UV light when preparing to lay eggs. Depriving a reptile of UVA light would be like making it live in a darkened room."
Cheers!
Todd
Lightyourreptiles.com
