63 °C is uncomfortable for lizards too

Some of the results of JBL’s Australia expedition were really astonishing: Around noon the ground temperature of the red Australian sand reached a foot-scorching 63 °C! At this temperature we didn’t see a single lizard, snake or spider. These extremely high temperatures mean that the activity period of the animals is limited to the morning, late afternoon, evening or the night. At 160,000 lux we also measured the highest ever luminous intensity found on any of the JBL expeditions. The air temperature at this time was 50 °C and the relative humidity 20 %. Not even retreating to other subsoils would have been much help to the animals here. The reddish, light coloured stones had heated up to 58.2 °C and the wood to 59.4 °C. To complete the biotope data the UV radiation was also measured. The UVA radiation was 3.36 mW/cm2 and the UVB radiation 1.28 mW/cm2. All in all Australia’s outback provides some unpleasant living conditions. And yet the most popular animal in the aquatic field originates from there: the bearded dragon!

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