Xanthophobia: the fear of the colour yellow

By Hayley Birch

What's so scary about it?
If anything I'd have said there's something quite pleasing about the colour yellow. I mean, think of daffodils and sunflowers, labradors and beaches. There can't be anything inherently frightening about a hue can there?

What do the scientists say about it?
Well, interestingly, sea turtles suffer from xanthophobia more than humans do. In the delightfully named paper, Voice of the Sea Turtle, Kelly Samek describes the plight of the loggerhead sea turtle. This poor beast has an aversion to light in the yellow part of the spectrum. They much prefer to be bathed in blue and green light. Less garish.

Xanthophobia: True or False?
Speaking on behalf of the turtle... True.

Back to Top Ten Weird Phobias

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