Do you often wonder if your cat can see colors while chasing different objects with bright colors or lights? The answer is yes and no! Cats can see colors but not all the shades as their vision is quite limited. To know more about this, let’s dive into the details and explore everything about your cat’s vision so that you can understand how they see the world. Read through to explore more.
Understanding the anatomy of cat’s eyes
Cat eyes are structured similar to human eyes. Let’s understand the structure in brief:
1. Cornea
The cornea is a transparent, dome-like structure on the front surface of the eye, made up of different layers. It helps in refraction of the light rays, focusing light on the back of the eye and protecting the front eye.
2. Retina
The retina is responsible for converting light rays into nerve signals and sending them to the brain. The brain works in interpreting these signals and forming an image.
3. Iris
It is the circular, colored area of the eye. It controls the amount of light entering in the eye by expanding or contracting the pupil.
4. Pupil
The pupil is the black-colored opening in the middle of the eye that allows light to enter the cat’s eyes. Moreover, cats have a slit-like pupil that helps in diluting or narrowing the pupils quicker.
5. Eyelids
The eyelid is the upper area of the eye that protects it from dust and abrasion.
6. Sclera
The sclera, white in color is the outer covering of the eyeball.
7. Conjunctiva
The conjunctiva is a thin membrane that connects the sclera and covers the inside of the eyelids.
8. Tapetum Lucidum
Tapetum Lucidium is a thin, reflective layer located just behind the retina. This reflective membrane helps magnify light in darker places, reflecting the light like a mirror. In case the light misses the retina, it bounces off the tapetum lucidium which helps cats see better in dim light and makes their eyes glow in the dark.
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What Colors Do Cats See?
Cat’s vision is limited and they can see only a few shades as compared to humans. Although they cannot see the full spectrum of colors, the color-detecting cone in their eyes allows them to see the varying shades of blue-violet, yellow and gray. Moreover, red and green appear to them as shades of gray, the same as for people who are red-green colorblind.
What Colors Cats Can’t See?
Red, orange, brown and green appear to cats as shades of blue and gray. Red and pink appear confusing for them and difficult to distinguish and are seen as shades of gray.
How Do Cats See Colors?
The construction of cat’s eyes allows them to see different colors. Just like humans, the retina (the light-sensitive part at the back of the eye) in the cat’s eyes has two cells – cones and rods.
Cones are responsible for their daytime vision and color perception while rods allow them to have good peripheral and night vision.
In contrast to human eyes, which have three types of cones that help in differentiating colors, cats only have two. Consequently, cats do not recognize as many hues as humans do. A cat’s color spectrum is more muted.
Can Cats See in the Dark?
Contrary to the popular belief that cats see in the dark, the truth is, they cannot see in complete darkness. However, the presence of a large number of rod cells allows them to see six times better than humans in dim light. Additionally, cats have exceptional perception instincts that help them to locate and hunt their prey, even in the dark.
Final Words
Through this blog, you have got a clear picture of your cat’s vision. Although cats cannot enjoy the vibrant colors of the rainbow like humans do, they can still see some shades and enjoy their limited vision. Consider buying colorful toys with shades your feline friend can see as this will make them feel loved and pampered.
