The Fluorescent Desert

The New Mexican desert under visible light appears in browns and greens (depending upon the time of year), but after dark and under long wave ultraviolet light the desert lights up like Christmas.  The recent purchase of a long wave UV black light flashlight for use in cleaning at the Painted Pony Resort was co-opted to explore the desert at night.  The LSU Arthropod Museum has always set up a black light trap on the property during their yearly visits and this idea was expanded with a hand held black light.  Wandering about in the desert in the dark with a UV light might seem odd but the abundance of fluorescing material makes it a worthwhile effort.  A frequent use of a black lights is scorpion hunting and a number Arizona bark scorpions were found in the desert.  They glow brightly under UV light and are easily visible from 10' away.  Other biological materials also fluoresce, especially lichens.  Some lichen species glow a bright orange and are easily picked out on rocks in the desert.  Teeth will also fluoresce, especially when using whiteners, and a check of the fossil horse teeth recovered recently confirmed that very old teeth also fluoresce to some extent appearing a bluish white under UV light.

While still learning how to photograph fluorescing materials using ultraviolet light, a few examples that are somewhat presentable are shown below.

An Arizona bark scorpion under long wave black light.

Green fluorescent chalcedony

Fossil horse teeth under black light