Are Compact Fluorescent Lights Bad for Reptiles?

If you keep a reptile indoors, you'll need to recreate its normal environment, including heat and light. While compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) are bright and save energy, they don't provide for all of your scaly pet's needs.

  1. CFL

    • A compact fluorescent lamp runs more efficiently than traditional incandescent bulbs. It puts out more light and less heat. This is good for people, but reptiles need the heat.

    Heat

    • Cold-blooded reptiles need an external heat source to raise their metabolism for things like eating and moving about. In the wild, they sun themselves. In a terrarium, you need a plug-in "hot rock" or heat lamp. A CFL runs too cool for reptiles to be used as a heat source.

    UVB

    • (The wavelengths of ultraviolet (UV) light at between 280 and 315 nanometers, called UVB, are important for vitamin D production in the skin. Sunlight provides plenty of UVB. Some CFLs also produce this light.

    Mercury Vapor

    • While a CFL contains a few milligrams of mercury, the bulb safely contains it. The tiny amount of mercury is not hazardous to animals.

    Light

    • The visible light provided by one or two CFLs is sufficient for lighting a terrarium. The quality and quantity of light is not harmful to reptiles.