# What can cats actually see?



## AddFran (Jul 10, 2004)

I've heard so many different things about a cat's vision, but I'm not sure what they can really see. 

Can they see things that are 2 dimensional....people here have said that their cats look in the mirror. Now, when I put my cats in front of the mirror I get absolutely no response. However, they chase the mouse on the screen of my computer and they WATCH t.v. - do they only see the light changes?? 

Do they see in only black and white??


----------



## lolakitty23 (Aug 17, 2004)

Skeeter lays on our bed in such a way that he CAN look at himself in the mirror.  Somtimes he even pounces at the mirror and bumps his little head. He also chaces my computer mouse on the screen and watches TV. I've often wondered about what colours a cat can see. I've seen it on a website once, I think they see more greens and blues, less reds and such. I don't remember very well, though. Perhaps someone else will provide us with some more conclusive insight?! Great question!


----------



## Maleke (Jul 2, 2003)

I'm curious about this as well.


----------



## queen of the nile (Aug 16, 2003)

I think that cats *do* see color, but that they are red/green color-blind. Catseyes only have two types ofcones (color sensors), whereas humsns have 3 and birds have 4 (they can see UV).


----------



## Jenn (Feb 16, 2004)

This is a great thread guys. Good going!


----------



## Ioana (Jul 12, 2003)

I have watched a documentary a while ago on how animals see comapared to humans
I have found something similar related to cats only since this is our interest in this thread

How Well Do Cats See?
Cats can see almost as well as humans can, and at times better. Cat vision is designed for detecting motion, useful for hunting. Like humans, cats have binocular vision, although not as well tuned as in humans. This means a cat most likely sees in 3-D, as do humans, which is very useful for judging distance. Cats appear to be slightly nearsighted, which would suggest their vision is tailored more for closer objects, such as prey, that can capture within running distance. Objects farther than several hundred yards rarely interest a cat. Cats have the ability to jump from as much as 6 feet onto a narrow window ledge without touching the window. This feat would require not only excellent balance, but also precise distance judgment. Cats have both rods and cones in the retina. Rods are the receptors that the eye uses for night time viewing and sudden movement. Cones are used during the daytime, and process color information. Cats have more rods than cones, as compared with humans, making cat night and motion vision superior to humans.
In low light, like night, color and hue are not perceived, only black, white and shades of gray.
Cats have an elliptical pupil which opens and closes much faster than round types and allows for a much larger pupil size. This allows more light to enter the eye. Cats also have a mirror like membrane on the back of their eyes called a Tapetum. It reflects the light passing through
the rods... back through the rods a second time, this time in the opposite direction.
The result is a double exposure of the light, which permit cats to see well in near darkness.
Although a cat cannot see in total darkness, a partly cloudy night sky with some stars will provide enough light for cats to hunt and see movement, even in the cover of most brush. At nigh, a cat relies on it's extremely sensitive hearing and directional ear movement to locate the general position of prey, then targets and captures the prey using it's keen eyesight.
The yellowish glow you see when you shine a light into cat eyes at night,
is really your light reflecting off the Tapetum membrane

The images below show pupil types and how a human and a cat might see the same image 
in near darkness.
Human / Cat









Human Night View









Cat Night View










how humans would view / how cats would view 
and how an animal with no or little color perception would view


----------



## lolakitty23 (Aug 17, 2004)

Wow Ioana! What great information! Thanks for posting this for us all to see.


----------



## Dutchman (Aug 25, 2004)

*Great post*

Ioana, that was a very interesting and informative post. Thank you for your time and effort.

Dutchman


----------



## AddFran (Jul 10, 2004)

ioana, thank you. that was great!


----------



## Ioana (Jul 12, 2003)

You are welcome, it was my pleasure


----------



## bogolove (Aug 7, 2004)

queen of the nile said:


> I think that cats *do* see color, but that they are red/green color-blind. Catseyes only have two types ofcones (color sensors), whereas humsns have 3 and birds have 4 (they can see UV).


That is very interesting.


----------

