# UV light effect on frogs?



## Sitting_Duck (Sep 28, 2008)

I have a spare uv(ultra violent) light around, and I was wondering if I could light a frog tank with it. Will it have any (bad) effects on the frog(s)? The plants?


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## Faceless (Sep 11, 2008)

I've read that UV lights are good for frogs and that it can sometimes be used as a treatment for certain things... you try an advanced search for "UV Light"
maybe select only post titles... i think you will find more info


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## Sitting_Duck (Sep 28, 2008)

Thanks

I couldn't find much through search, maybe I'll just wait until I can get a few more opinions. I picked the light up for $5 at a garage sale, and it works =). It's about 12 inches long.... Will the effects of the UV go away if it has to shine through plastic wrap?


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## Faceless (Sep 11, 2008)

i know acrylic and glass both block UV Rays,
but not entirely only like 30% or so...
Maybe somebody else will chime in here 
and fully explain it


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## Sitting_Duck (Sep 28, 2008)

thanks =0


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## ChrisK (Oct 28, 2008)

do a search for solacryl


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

It depends on the UV light.. not all "UV" lights or even all "full spectrum" lights produce the correct wavelengths of UVB required for conversion of provitamin D to D3. 

Ed


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## ChrisK (Oct 28, 2008)

Hey Ed, do you use any UVB bulbs and would you recommend solacryl or starphire? starphire seems like it might be a lot easier to get than solacryl


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

I do use them at work and I want to incorporate them at home.. I am interested in following the setups used in rearing and husbandry of Spray toads. They utilize some of the halogen track light bulbs to provide localized basking areas where the toads can have access to UVB. The down side is this requires modifying the lens on the bulbs but the bulbs only cost about $4.00 each. 

At work for the most part I have screened tops and use humidifiers and screens without too much in the way of covers to maximize UV penetration. 

Ed


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## ChrisK (Oct 28, 2008)

Yeah I was using a screened top/uvb bulb for the cayos before the humidity dropped so much in the winter and put lexan pieces on it, what type of screening do you use and does as much penetrate as does through the starphire or solacryl? i got some uyamas and i wanna try to stack the deck as much as possible since they're supposedly one of the harder to breed pums


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Hi Chris,

If you can get a copy this is the article you want to review Wiley InterScience :: Session Cookies

Ed


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## ChrisK (Oct 28, 2008)

Thanks Ed, that link opens a session cookies error though, and doing a search on that site for UVB shows hundreds of results, could you tell me the article name? Thanks -


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## Sitting_Duck (Sep 28, 2008)

I kind of got lost here...

Using an UV light will have no ill effects, correct?


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## ChrisK (Oct 28, 2008)

Oops sorry, maybe if you told exactly what bulb/light it is it would be easier


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Evaluation of UVB reduction by materials commonly used in reptile husbandry
Zoo Biology
Volume 26, Issue 5, Date: September/October 2007, Pages: 417-423
R. Michael Burger, William H. Gehrmann, Gary W. Ferguson
Abstract | References | Full Text: PDF (118K)

And for the abstract 

Abstract 
Ultraviolet B (UVB) irradiation (285-320 nm) is considered important for metabolic processes and reproduction in many reptile species by facilitating the synthesis of vitamin D3. In captivity, UVB radiation reaching an animal may be diminished by the properties of the materials used in enclosure construction. We investigated the UVB-attenuating properties of 14 materials commonly used in cage tops for reptile enclosures. Irradiances were measured by two types of hand-held broadband radiometers and the D3-synthesizing potential was assessed by the use of an in vitro model. For UV-transmitting acrylic, a significant discrepancy between meter irradiances and in vitro model values for D3-synthesizing ability was observed, with meter readings underestimating the blocking effect. In contrast, attenuation of UVB irradiances by air-permeable materials, such as wire screen, measured with meters was generally comparable to the attenuation of D3-synthesizing ability as measured by in vitro models. Relatively simple meter readings can therefore be used to reflect reduction of D3-synthesizing ability through air-permeable materials. Zoo Biol 26:417-423, 2007. © 2007 Wiley-Liss, Inc.


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## Sitting_Duck (Sep 28, 2008)

Thanks

I guess its a yes then, I can use it to light a viv...


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## ChrisK (Oct 28, 2008)

Awesome Ed thanks a lot.

Sitting duck, that post was about the type of top that would be best for UVB to pass through (looks like screen is the best) - you still should post or check out what bulb you're using because I don't know much about reptile lights, but aren't some of them used for heat? some reptile keepers could probably chime in, but one thing you wouldn't want is to get it too hot in there


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## Sitting_Duck (Sep 28, 2008)

He said it was used for a beared dragon. So I'll check the wattage and things later.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

It depends on the bulb.. some bulbs advertised as full spectrum or possessing UV do not emit UVB but can emit some UVA. You need UVB for conversion of provitamin D to D3. Simply because they used it for a bearded dragon doesn't mean anything as to whether or not it will benefit the frogs. 

Ed


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## Faceless (Sep 11, 2008)

Sitting Duck,
Are you trying to use UV Lights as your sole
lighting for your tank ? I would maybe have
a couple lights like a (not sure your tank size)
compact fluorescent and a UVB Bulb, but watch
your tanks temperatures... Think about the
distance to tank, having around 6700k bulbs
for your plants... There is more to it than
just the UVB Light...


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## ChrisK (Oct 28, 2008)

Ed do you think this study does us any good? It includes starphire and uv transmitting acrylic but says "The study focused on evaluating plastic films that either blocked or transmitted UV wavelengths below 380 nm" which is a little below what we need? (clicking the link should work)
An Error Occurred Setting Your User Cookie


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## georgiekittie (Jan 27, 2009)

Ed said:


> It depends on the UV light.. not all "UV" lights or even all "full spectrum" lights produce the correct wavelengths of UVB required for conversion of provitamin D to D3.
> 
> Ed


I read somewhere that while UVB is important to other reptiles it doesn't matter for dart frogs. Is that true?

I am also trying to figure out what I should light my tank with- I have an 18" flourescent fixture. Some people say they simply use flourescents rated "daylight" found at hardware stores. Is that good enough for the frogs and the plants? If frogs do need UVB, how much do they need?


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## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

Just a warning, be very careful using compact UVB bulbs like Reptisun and T5 Zilla bulbs. There have been studies showing increased photokeratitis. Zoomed is currently planning on changing the phosphor to make the bulbs less biologically active.

UV Lighting for Reptiles: A new problem with high UVB output fluorescent compact lamps and tubes?


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

ChrisK said:


> Ed do you think this study does us any good? It includes starphire and uv transmitting acrylic but says "The study focused on evaluating plastic films that either blocked or transmitted UV wavelengths below 380 nm" which is a little below what we need? (clicking the link should work)
> An Error Occurred Setting Your User Cookie


There was a much better study done that actually used conversion rates of provitamin D to D3 as a comparison to the UVB meters to measure the transmission but I can't locate where I put the article off hand. 

If you supply adequate shaded areas for the frogs to be able to modify thier behavior to thier exposure to UV, then it would be advantageous to the frogs to have access to it. One of the things that is good in providing access is that this acts as a backup to the supplements. 

I'm not sure that I think making the bulbs less biologically active is a benefit as the UVB exposure drops off really dramatically as you move away from the bulb...... most of the bulbs are not very useful at distances greater than 18 inches.... 

Ed


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## Rain_Frog (Apr 27, 2004)

Ed, if you read the article, the problem is that the engineered UVB wavelength is too short, far more potent than sunlight-- and very reactive. Zoomed's other bulbs do not have this problem, as they contain longer wavelengths of UVB.

http://www.uvguide.co.uk/phototherapyphosphor-tests.htm


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

There is some question on the accuracy of using readers that are not calibrated for the tesst with the conversion of provitamin D to D3 as several articles showed that results obtained without a control may be incorrect. On a scan I did not see a reference to using this to make sure that the solarmeter's were correctly calibrated (the same article also was able to demonstrate that using broadband readers can also be problematic).

In addition, one of the items that has to be considered here is how the enclosure for the animal is set-up. When dealing with reptiles, the most common method is to provide the basking site and the exposure to UV all in one location because of this the reptile is forced to maintain exposure if body temperature is to be maintained which is not how the reptiles behaves in the wild. The exposure in the article is typically linked to close approach of the reptile which if the person is setting up an appropriate enclosure would not occur... Allowing the animal to have access to basking sites that are not directly under the UVB lamp would allow the animal to control thier exposure as they would in the wild (and has been shown in panther chameleons given the opportunity). 
The author also makes the assumption that forest herps would have very low exposure and ignored the potential impact of sun flecks as a source of exposure. 

I have issues with the idea of taking something that is already marginally effective in supplying UVB to an animal for more than 4-6 months and reducing that ability due to what appears to be improper husbandry on the part of the keeper.

Currently with the Kihansi spray toads, Zoos are now using halogen trak lighting bulbs that have has the protective lens removed as this allows for small basking areas that allow the toads to bask and metabolize provitamin D to D3 with out issues and these are intense sources of UVB in from around 285 nm on up........ and the issues with the photo-keratinitis has not been reported despite routine necropsies and routine monitoring of thier health by vets used to dealing with amphibians.... 
The amphibians need to be able to get out of the direct effect as they need.. in other wards if you are setting up a cage for pumilio do not put all of the calling perches under the UV light...... 

Ed


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