Do torts absorb UV rays though their shell, their skin, or both?
Question about UV
- Thread starter Shelly
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That's an excellent question and one I've never given any thought to. Knowing the answer would also answer whether or not we should use topicals on the tortoise's shell. Waiting with bated breath for Madkins to tell us.
That's a very good question and though I know of no known studies on the actual amount of UV absorbed by the shell compared to the skin...the answer has to be both. The carapace, though hard, is a living and growing part of the tortoise. I guess it can be very deceiving,...the shell is, however, extremely sensitive, just try tickling it very lightly while your tortie is asleep and see if they react. How much is absorbed and thus synthesized into Vit D in the "skin" covering the scutes versus the skin on the legs, head and neck is any scientist's guess. Very thought provoking question...thanks. Now watch Madkins blow me out of the water with several scientific studies of his own design...hahaha.
I cannot find a concrete answer to this either, but my gut feeling would be that since you have to go so deeply into the shell to get to nerves or blood that it does NOT process UVB. I think the 'sun worship' pose reinforces this as it exposes the softer tissues to the sun.
Ticklishness is a good point, but how much of it is transmitted vibration to deeper structures?
Ticklishness is a good point, but how much of it is transmitted vibration to deeper structures?
This is so funny, I was thinking of a similiar question today. The last 2 days have been a bit cloudy, so my CDT's have not received natural UVB. But my question is...How is UVB measured?? And how much daily or weekly UVB should a tortoise receive?? I know the more the better..but how much is enough?? I dont have UVB lights.. so I keep my torts outside all day. But on these days I dont have that luxury.
UV is in the air regardless of whether its cloudy or not.
The UV wavelengths are 'bouncier' than most of the colors and get deeper into shade, etc. They are blocked somewhat by clouds, but in the wintertime, the bigger problem for those of us up North is that less of it hits the ground. Above about the 40th parallel, not enough hits the ground to work the cycle in the winter.
The good news is that the critical vitamin D is saved in the fatty tissues for just this sort of emergency. Even a rather long cloudy period can be weathered by using the fat stores. Of course, once the sun and UV comes back, all life just wants to bask in the warmth and recharge those stores.
The way they measure UV is too complicated to get into here, but the www.uvguide.co.uk site gets deeply into it if you are curious.
The best guess I have seen is to figure about 30-90 minutes a week in sun strong enough to give you a good tan, spread over several sessions, for most animals and humans. We don't need a LOT of vitamin D/UVB- just enough to make things work.
(Also- it is apparently impossible to overdose on UVB-generated vitamin D, so don't worry about too much sun as long as the animals have access to shelter.
The good news is that the critical vitamin D is saved in the fatty tissues for just this sort of emergency. Even a rather long cloudy period can be weathered by using the fat stores. Of course, once the sun and UV comes back, all life just wants to bask in the warmth and recharge those stores.
The way they measure UV is too complicated to get into here, but the www.uvguide.co.uk site gets deeply into it if you are curious.
The best guess I have seen is to figure about 30-90 minutes a week in sun strong enough to give you a good tan, spread over several sessions, for most animals and humans. We don't need a LOT of vitamin D/UVB- just enough to make things work.
(Also- it is apparently impossible to overdose on UVB-generated vitamin D, so don't worry about too much sun as long as the animals have access to shelter.
Thank you for that very specific answer. It definitely enlightent me. Thank You.
The UV wavelengths are 'bouncier' than most of the colors and get deeper into shade, etc. They are blocked somewhat by clouds, but in the wintertime, the bigger problem for those of us up North is that less of it hits the ground. Above about the 40th parallel, not enough hits the ground to work the cycle in the winter.
The good news is that the critical vitamin D is saved in the fatty tissues for just this sort of emergency. Even a rather long cloudy period can be weathered by using the fat stores. Of course, once the sun and UV comes back, all life just wants to bask in the warmth and recharge those stores.
The way they measure UV is too complicated to get into here, but the www.uvguide.co.uk site gets deeply into it if you are curious.
The best guess I have seen is to figure about 30-90 minutes a week in sun strong enough to give you a good tan, spread over several sessions, for most animals and humans. We don't need a LOT of vitamin D/UVB- just enough to make things work.
(Also- it is apparently impossible to overdose on UVB-generated vitamin D, so don't worry about too much sun as long as the animals have access to shelter.
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The UV wavelengths are 'bouncier' than most of the colors and get deeper into shade, etc. They are blocked somewhat by clouds, but in the wintertime, the bigger problem for those of us up North is that less of it hits the ground. Above about the 40th parallel, not enough hits the ground to work the cycle in the winter.
The good news is that the critical vitamin D is saved in the fatty tissues for just this sort of emergency. Even a rather long cloudy period can be weathered by using the fat stores. Of course, once the sun and UV comes back, all life just wants to bask in the warmth and recharge those stores.
The way they measure UV is too complicated to get into here, but the www.uvguide.co.uk site gets deeply into it if you are curious.
The best guess I have seen is to figure about 30-90 minutes a week in sun strong enough to give you a good tan, spread over several sessions, for most animals and humans. We don't need a LOT of vitamin D/UVB- just enough to make things work.
(Also- it is apparently impossible to overdose on UVB-generated vitamin D, so don't worry about too much sun as long as the animals have access to shelter.
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