@shinnick_g @nytimes We stumbled upon the platypus' glow when we were studying the fluorescent flying squirrels! We thought, "What mammal species is completely opposite from a flying squirrel...." and sure enough! ๐
Ultraviolet fluorescence discovered in New World flying squirrels (Glaucomys)
Allison M Kohler, Erik R Olson, Jonathan G Martin & Paula Spaeth Anich
Journal of Mammalogy, gyy177, https://t.co/mzE0Lkhh7y
@leahville We used museum specimens for our study, so no squirrels were harmed in the making of this project! The museums have collected donated animals over time for purposes like this! :)
@woman_byrd @NatGeo The pictures that we had of living squirrels were really grainy because they moved so quickly! To best illustrate our point, we wanted to use higher quality pictures of museum specimens.
Thank you @NatGeo for sharing our work! Seeing the fluorescence for the first time really made me realize that there's so much to discover (and a lot of it is hiding right in front of us)!
@_liekos_ @NatureNews By utilizing museum specimens! Museums are a great scientific resource that most people forget about! There's so much to be discovered that's hiding right in front of our eyes!
@LFVelezphd We are still researching what the actual fluorescent compounds are in Glaucomys, so I don't have an answer for you yet! Thanks for the interest!