Editing Fluorescence (section)

=== Compared to bioluminescence and biophosphorescence ===
==== Fluorescence ====
Fluorescence is the phenomenon of absorption of [[electromagnetic radiation|electromagnetic]] radiation, typically from ultraviolet or [[visible light]], by a molecule and the subsequent emission of a photon of a lower energy (smaller frequency, longer wavelength). This causes the light that is emitted to be a different color than the light that is absorbed. Stimulating light excites an [[electron]] to an excited state. When the molecule returns to the ground state, it releases a photon, which is the fluorescent emission. The excited state lifetime is short, so emission of light is typically only observable when the absorbing light is on. Fluorescence can be of any wavelength but is often more significant when emitted photons are in the visible spectrum. When it occurs in a living organism, it is sometimes called biofluorescence. Fluorescence should not be confused with bioluminescence and biophosphorescence.<ref name="Fluorescence in marine organisms">{{cite web|title=Fluorescence in marine organisms|url=http://gestaltswitchexpeditions.com/fluorescence-in-marine-orga/|website=Gestalt Switch Expeditions|url-status=dead|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150221070425/http://www.gestaltswitchexpeditions.com/fluorescence-in-marine-orga/|archive-date=21 February 2015}}</ref> Pumpkin toadlets that live in the Brazilian Atlantic forest are fluorescent.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/fluorescence-discovered-in-tiny-brazilian-frogs-119032900584_1.html|title=Fluorescence discovered in tiny Brazilian frogs|agency=Press Trust of India|date=2019-03-29|work=Business Standard India|access-date=2019-03-30|archive-date=30 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330124158/https://www.business-standard.com/article/pti-stories/fluorescence-discovered-in-tiny-brazilian-frogs-119032900584_1.html|url-status=live}}</ref>

==== Bioluminescence ====
[[Bioluminescence]] differs from fluorescence in that it is the natural production of light by chemical reactions within an organism, whereas fluorescence is the absorption and reemission of light from the environment.<ref name="Fluorescence in marine organisms"/> [[Firefly|Fireflies]] and [[anglerfish]] are two examples of bioluminescent organisms.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://earthnworld.com/top-10-amazing-bioluminescent-animals-planet-earth/|title=Top 10 Amazing Bioluminescent Animals on Planet Earth|last=Utsav|date=2017-12-02|website=Earth and World|language=en-US|access-date=2019-03-30|archive-date=30 March 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190330124620/https://earthnworld.com/top-10-amazing-bioluminescent-animals-planet-earth/|url-status=live}}</ref> To add to the potential confusion, some organisms are both bioluminescent and fluorescent, like the sea pansy [[Renilla reniformis]], where bioluminescence serves as the light source for fluorescence.<ref>{{cite journal |last1=Ward |first1=William W. |last2=Cormier |first2=Milton J. |title=Energy Transfer Via Protein–Protein Interaction in Renilla Bioluminescence |journal=Photochemistry and Photobiology |date=1978 |volume=27 |issue=4 |pages=389–396 |doi=10.1111/j.1751-1097.1978.tb07621.x|s2cid=84887904 }}</ref>

==== Phosphorescence ====
[[Phosphorescence]] is similar to fluorescence in its requirement of light wavelengths as a provider of excitation energy. The difference here lies in the relative stability of the energized electron. Unlike with fluorescence, in phosphorescence the electron retains stability, emitting light that continues to "glow in the dark" even after the stimulating light source has been removed.<ref name="Fluorescence in marine organisms"/> For example, [[phosphorescence|glow-in-the-dark]] stickers are phosphorescent, but there are no truly ''biophosphorescent'' animals known.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.seasky.org/deep-sea/firefly-squid.html|title=Firefly Squid – Deep Sea Creatures on Sea and Sky|website=www.seasky.org|access-date=2019-03-30|archive-date=28 June 2019|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190628025334/http://www.seasky.org/deep-sea/firefly-squid.html|url-status=live}}</ref>