Do cats distinguish colors, or vision features of fluffy pets

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Do cats distinguish colors, or vision features of fluffy pets
Do cats distinguish colors, or vision features of fluffy pets

Video: Do cats distinguish colors, or vision features of fluffy pets

Video: Do cats distinguish colors, or vision features of fluffy pets
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The sense organs of cats and cats are similar to human ones, but they function somewhat differently. Can cats see colors? An animal's senses are intended, at the very least, to aid in hunting. Even a pet that lives off the hook retains a keen sense of the hunter.

Night vision

The eyes of a cat in relation to the size of the body are simply huge. They are much more sensitive to light than the human organs of vision. There are significant differences between human and animal vision, and it is not entirely correct to speak of the owner of excellent vision that he "sees like a cat." Representatives of cats see remarkably in poor lighting: they need about 7 times less light than a person. But bright light, on the contrary, makes it difficult to see them.

Can cats see colors?
Can cats see colors?

This is one of the typical features of our furry buddies' vision. It is explained by the special structure of the organs of vision. Behind the feline retinathe eye is a reflective shell resembling fish scales - tapetum. It covers the fundus of the eye, performing a reflective function, and provides the animal with excellent visibility at dusk. Refracted on it, the light returns back to the retina, which increases the clarity of perception in the dark. The way cats see colors has nothing to do with this feature.

Features of cat perception

The presence of tapetum lucidum provides the cat with good night vision, but it also makes it difficult to see in bright light. That is why in bright light the animal does not immediately distinguish anything in front of it. The cat's eyes "shine" thanks to the same reflective layer, and to achieve this effect, at least the slightest light source is needed.

Do cats see colors?
Do cats see colors?

In pitch darkness, it is not observed. This is explained simply: the tapetum only reflects the existing light particles, but does not emit them itself. Accordingly, in absolute darkness, like a person, a cat cannot see. Since the organs of vision of the animal are located close to each other and in the same plane, the images of one and the second eye are similar, but not quite the same. This difference provides a three-dimensional final picture, that is, three-dimensional. In other words, the animal's vision is binocular.

Do cats see colors?

In the process of evolution, nocturnal predators have perfectly adapted to twilight vision: they notice even the slightest movement in the dark. But for the sake of these wonderful qualities, they sacrificed others - contrast and the ability toperceive a wide range of colors. So do cats see colors? Not so long ago it was believed that they see and distinguish only white and black. This assumption turned out to be wrong.

How do cats see colors?
How do cats see colors?

Animals are able to distinguish between 6 primary tones and many shades of gray - up to 25. Cats, like humans, are trichromats: they also have 3 types of cones. But their color perception is very different from a normal human, resembling more the vision of a color blind person. What are the shades of colors that a cat can distinguish? They can see different shades of green and blue well, but they can perceive red as green, and purple as a shade of blue. Of course, the rich palette of colors and shades that Homo sapiens sees perfectly is not available to the feline family.

Nearsightedness or farsightedness?

The visual acuity of a he althy person is 1.0, while in a cat this indicator can reach only 0.2 - 0.1. In other words, what a person can see at a distance of 60 meters, a cat distinguishes only from 6. Whether cats distinguish colors, we have already noted above. Nature is prudent: for a good hunt, a medium-sized animal needs the ability to see close objects more.

Shades of colors distinguished by a cat
Shades of colors distinguished by a cat

Saturated colors and small details are not available to the night hunter, but he does not really need them. But at times sees better in the dark. Although excellent night vision has a reverse aspect. Can cats see colors in normal light? During the day they see like people with disabilitiesgreen-red perception. They pick out blue well, but don't see much difference between red, green, and brown.

Interesting facts

If you carefully follow the pet, you will notice that it reacts much more readily to horizontal movements than to vertical ones. The animal pays much more attention to a toy rolling on the floor than to an object oscillating up and down. The fact is that it rather notices objects moving in a horizontal plane.

Can cats see colors?
Can cats see colors?

The next interesting feature of the cat's organs of vision is the lack of muscles necessary to regulate the shape of the lens. For this reason, they cannot focus on an object that is too close, like humans. They have to move back to see him.

Can cats see colors?
Can cats see colors?

A cat is able to catch a fast-moving rodent, while a slowly moving object often looks completely motionless to her. Here they are, the features of the vision of those who "walk by themselves"!

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