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- Sep 17, 2009
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- 13
The hyaline layer is a thin, tough coating on a scorpion's exoskeleton. It is why all true scorpions glow under ultraviolet light. When exposed to UV light, the hyaline layer absorbs the light and refracts it as a visible neon blue to green glow. The hyaline layer fluoresces long after the scorpion has passed. When a scorpion molts its exoskeleton, it sheds the hyaline layer, as well. The scorpion’s new exoskeleton will not fluoresce until it has hardened, or sclerotized. Thus, immediately after a molt, the exoskeleton will glow under black light, but not the actual scorpion. The hyaline layer can also cause the liquid in jars of preserved scorpions to glow under UV light. Biologists do not agree as to the reason that scorpions fluoresce.
