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The Parietal "Eye"

Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2012 11:01 am
by tgcorley
Wali's Blue Tongue.JPG
A few months ago I took a picture that clearly shows the parietal (or third) "eye" on the head of my Northern BTS, Wali. You can see a little window on top of the head through which light enters. The "eye" is part of the pineal gland, which in humans is buried deep in the brain. It is believed that light stimulates the gland to release melatonin and other compounds that are involved in the regulation of the animal's circadian rhythms. Cool, no?

Re: The Parietal "Eye"

Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2012 1:37 pm
by hurricanejen
Love it! These are super easy to see on a handful of species (bearded dragons in particular) but you don't always catch them easily in skinks. Great shot, thanks for sharing!

Re: The Parietal "Eye"

Posted: Wed Dec 26, 2012 8:49 pm
by Rani-May
Ive always found this fascinating. My darkest skinks parietal, or third eye, appears very bright white just before shedding and is very clearly visible on a daily basis even from afar :)

Re: The Parietal "Eye"

Posted: Thu Dec 27, 2012 6:27 am
by kenn
Nice shot!
Thanks for sharing!

Re: The Parietal "Eye"

Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2012 5:45 am
by Nae
When he gets drunk, one of my dads friends drags people over to Zekes tank to educate them about parietal eyes...Hes very proud of knowing that snippet of info :lol:

Re: The Parietal "Eye"

Posted: Sat Dec 29, 2012 5:53 pm
by Jeff
Very cool Mr. Corley. That is a great picture too! Very nice looking northern in my unbiased opinion. :wink:

Re: The Parietal "Eye"

Posted: Thu Jan 03, 2013 11:11 pm
by Emz3
This is amazing! I had no idea! I will have to read up on this and look at my skink's head more closely! Thank you for sharing!

Re: The Parietal "Eye"

Posted: Fri Jan 04, 2013 2:00 am
by dsteamn
They are QUITE evident on newborn babies too, even if you don't know what you're looking for.

Re: The Parietal "Eye"

Posted: Sat Jan 05, 2013 5:42 pm
by Spindown
LOL Nae thats funny. I thought this was the coolest thing ever when I found out about it :)