Science Explains Why Cat Eyes Look And Function The Way They Do

[RaykZ0r]

                                                                        

 

 

 

 

                                                                                                               Science Explains Why Cat Eyes Look And Function The Way They Do

 

 

   

           The pupil control how light passes through the eye and it operates pretty much just like the aperture of a camera. When light is plentiful, the pupil shrinks. When light is scarce, the pupil dilates. All animals' pupils do this to some extent.But cat's eyes can do this much, much better than ours can. It's why they can see so well in the dark. Cat pupils are thin-slitted and vertical and they can expand much wider than our pupils can when light is scarce.

In fact, a cat's pupils can dilate enough to cover almost all of the iris and can expand up to 135 times its size. 

Therefore, cats can see much better in the dark than we can. All animal eyes have cells in the retina called photoreceptors that process the light our pupils let in and synthesize it into a map for the brain to interpret as an image.

There are two kinds of photoreceptors: rods and cones. Rods pick up light while cones interpret colors. These cells then produce impulses that travel to the brain where they are deciphered into the images we see.

But cat eyes have one more trick that helps them to see so well in the dark — and it's the reason why cat eyes glow.

Ever thought your cat's eyes looked so luminous that they were reflective? That's because they are. Behind your cat's eyes are specialized cells, called the tapetum lucidum, that reflect light outwards — much like light hitting a mirror. They thus can illuminate their own path like a pair of headlights on a car.