4
$\begingroup$

I have heard that birds have exceptional eyesight. How far does this mean they can see? What's the resolution like? Are we talking about just vague shapes or something like, at 100 feet, seeing individual hairs on a dog's fur coat?

I've also read that, in general, primates are the only mammals that have color vision. I know birds are not mammals. Is it common for birds to have color vision as well, like primates?

$\endgroup$
3
  • 5
    $\begingroup$ en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bird_vision $\endgroup$ Jan 10, 2015 at 17:34
  • 4
    $\begingroup$ This is a massive topic, with so many exceptions any short answer would probably pointless. Is there a specific kind of bird you had in mind? Even simply covering Raptors would fill a chapter of a textbook. Also, where did you get primates being a special case of colour vision? Thats false. Even dogs, famously colourblind, are thought to have two pigments for colour vision (not red, just blue and yellow). $\endgroup$
    – James
    Jan 11, 2015 at 2:28
  • 4
    $\begingroup$ primates are trichromats, many other animals (most mammals) are dichromats (can see color, but less well than primates). Birds, on the contrary, are tetrachromats and can see color better than we do. Hence your 2nd statement is incorrect. The first question needs refinement. $\endgroup$
    – AliceD
    Jan 11, 2015 at 11:51

0

Browse other questions tagged .