It’s no secret that cats are mysterious creatures with many different talents. Think about it, cats can scratch their ears with their back foot, use their ears to change their facial expression, and of course, meow. With so many cool things that they can do, many feline owners wonder if their little fur-ball can see in the dark. So, let’s find out! Can cats see in the dark?
Can Cats See in the Dark?
Yes, felines have excellent night vision, allowing them to see better than we can during low light hours. Cats’ eyes are shaped differently than human eyes, which means each eye sees a different picture of the world at any given time (although both pictures overlap). The result is an overlap between the two images. One is more detailed while the other has less detail or even none at all, making it easier for them to distinguish objects in their environment when it’s dark out. This is why it seems like they’re looking right through you when you walk into a room; they can see your figure but not your face.
How are Cat Eyes Different From Ours?
This extraordinary ability also works a little differently for cats than humans because of the cells in their eyes called rods and cones, which are sensitive to light and color, respectively. While there are more cones in human eyes, giving us better vision during the day, there are more rods in cats’ eyes, helping them see better at night. In fact, cats have many more rods than humans resulting in superior night vision-a benefit that comes from being a nocturnal predator.
How Far Can Cats See in the Dark?
We now know that cats can see better than humans do in low light conditions, but just how far can they see? It turns out that felines have a visual field of 220 degrees, providing them with a much broader view of their surroundings-including what’s going on outside their line of sight.
To put 220 degrees into context, as humans, we can see roughly 120 degrees. That being said, the visual field of a cat is nearly twice as large as ours! In other words, not only can cats see better at night than us humans, but they can also see even more around them than any of us!
Are Cats Colourblind?
Although cats can see quite well in the dark, they are, in fact, partially colorblind. So, a white or beige-colored object in a dark room will appear grey when you’ve turned the lights off. This is because their retina only has two relatively smaller cones sensitive to color instead of three cones that can perceive more colors in bright light. This means that cats have poorer visual detail and depth perception during the daytime than humans, but it also makes them highly adapted for efficient night-time hunting abilities.
Conclusion
Overall, to answer the question you had when you first started reading this article, yes, cats can see in the dark! Thanks to how their eyes are built, felines can see much further than humans in the night.