Do bulls distinguish colors: how are the eyes of cattle and are they color blind

Cow is an animal familiar to most people. In the grandmother's village, many carefully stroked the cow's muzzle, knowing that she could be frightened and jerk sharply for no reason at all. And sometimes the cow peers intently at an object that is nearby. To understand the mechanism of this behavior, you need to know how the animal sees the world, and whether bulls distinguish basic colors in the same way as humans.

How a bull's eye works

The organ of vision of a cow is in many ways similar to other mammals. It is located in the eye socket of the skull. It consists of a shell, lens and vitreous body. The bull's eyeball connects to the brain via the optic nerve.

There are three layers of shell:

1. The outer one consists of the cornea and sclera. Muscles and tendons come to it, which make the eye move. The transparent cornea conducts light reflected from objects inwards. She is very sensitive to pain and pressure due to the large number of nerve endings and lack of blood vessels.
2. The middle part includes the iris, ciliary body and circulatory network. The iris acts as a lens, directing light. It also contains a color pigment that colors the eye. Cows are dominated by shades of brown. The pupil is in the center of the iris. The vascular network is responsible for the nutrition of the organ and is located between the retina and sclera. The ciliary body controls the curvature of the lens, regulates heat transfer.
3. The retina (inner layer) processes light and converts it into an information impulse going to the brain. In front of it is the vitreous body. It keeps the tone of the eye. This is where the rods and cones are located.The former help to navigate during the day. The latter provide color vision.

Outside, the eye apparatus of a cow is protected by eyelids, covered from the inside with a mucous conjunctiva. There is a nictitating membrane in the inner corner.

The organ of vision of a bull is protected from infections and debris by tears, which contain the enzyme lysozyme. Well, lush eyelashes save you from insects and thorny plants.

Features of visual perception

The lens of the eye of cows is adapted so that they distinguish objects well at a distance of up to 3 meters from themselves, but then they begin to blur. That is why the bulls look at one point for a long time. In the area in front of the nose is a "blind spot". However, neither congenital myopia, nor this, does not interfere with the life of the ungulate.

Unlike humans, the bull has a 330° field of view thanks to its slightly elongated pupil. He sees objects in front of him binocularly, with both eyes, and on the sides with only one. Cows get scared when approached from the side of the head.

These mammals see everything in an enlarged scale at close range. And the approaching child, the shepherd, the milkmaid will be perceived as something threatening. The bull can see in the dark. Weak light inside the eye is reflected from the retina and amplified by 5-10 times. This enables the buffalo to notice predators hunting at night. If you shine a flashlight on a cow, her pupils will glow white or yellow.

Do cows see colors

It is a common misconception that bulls are colorblind. Mammals are considered color blind if they are unable to visually perceive one or more colors. But more often this term is used to refer to a person who does not see red shades.

Representatives of the bovid family recognize the palette of colors necessary for normal life: green, yellow, blue, red, black and white.But their saturation is so low that for a bull they merge into a single color. A cow has only 2 color receptors (humans have 3). In view of this feature, cattle are susceptible to shades of blue and yellow-green spectrum. They do not recognize red. But this fact does not make the bulls color blind.

Why is it that bulls don't like red?

"Acts like a red rag to a bull" - a familiar expression, isn't it? This myth arose from the popularity of the Spanish bullfight, where brave bullfighters fought angry horned rivals using a scarlet muleta. This fact has long been refuted by scientists.

The aggressive behavior of the bull is not at all connected with the red matter. The beast reacts to its movement and perceives it as an enemy or an obstacle. Since the fighter is at least 5 meters away, the bull does not see a clear outline of the enemy and attacks the first moving object.

Besides, bulls for bullfights are specially grown and trained. And on the eve of the performance itself, they deliberately do not feed in order to increase aggression.

Such an explosive mixture makes you believe that an angry beast rushes exactly at the crimson barrier. Although in reality it can be any color, it was made red to give the fight a spectacle, attract the attention of the audience and demonstrate the intensity of passions.

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