Do Ball Pythons Need UVB? Needed Or Not

Do ball pythons need UVB is a very commonly asked question we hear, which still hasn’t been fully scientifically proven.

There are many debates whether ball pythons need UVB to survive. UVB isn’t actually needed for a ball python to survive. The lack of UVB will not have any effect on its life expectancy. However, UVB has been shown to improve a ball pythons immune system and general health and wellness.

(Please scroll down to the bottom of the page to find ‘Other related articles you might like’, once you are done reading).

Ball pythons are more than happy of the ambient of room lighting. Having a ball pythons vivarium situated in a room with a window will be enough natural lighting. This is actually the best form of lighting for a ball python as they need a day/night schedule. Alternatively you can have the vivariums lighting system on a timer. This will work just as effectively, meaning you won’t have to worry about turning it on and off each morning/evening.

Vitamin D3 is toxic in larger amount to snakes and many reptiles. For this reason, giving it to a ball python as a supplement can be very risky. Amazingly, reptiles never generate too much vitamin D3 in their skin whilst they are basking. This is because natural levels of UVA prevent the overproduction of vitamin D3.

Table of Contents

UVB Lighting

UVB lighting can have its benefits for a ball python as I have already explained. It’s best to keep the UVB lighting at the warmer end of the vivarium. This will replicate the activity of basking. Ball pythons will bask in the wild to warm up. Unknowingly to them the UVB they get from the suns rays actually help with their wellbeing.

Remember that UVB light can not be seem on the light spectrum, it’s invisible. UVB from lights is not infinite. It will run out well before the bulbs element actually gives way. You should change a UVB bulb roughly every 6 months. Ball pythons don’t actually needing UVB, so it will cause no harm if it’s not changed at the recommended time.

Pro’s and Con’s for UVB

Excessive lighting can actually cause a ball python a lot of stress. Being a mainly nocturnal species, ball pythons rarely see the light of day. At least through its brightest hours. Ball pythons become active and dusk, and will hunt for food well into the darkness of the night.

A beneficial element from UVB list for ball pythons is that it is necessary to maintain the correct levels of vitamin D3 and calcium. UVB regulates the synthesis of vitamin D3 which allows ball pythons to properly absorb and metabolise calcium. On the flip side, a ball python will get all the calcium it needs from the animals they eat. UVB would only really be beneficial to wild species that haven’t eaten in a very long time.

Researchers actually believe that UVB has a direct correlation with the brightness in colour of your ball python. Although ball pythons are generally quite dull in colour UVB is thought to excellerate the individual colours.