Animal's Eye Reflection

[rickb]

Has anyone wondered about what kind of animal is out there in the dark, when the only thing you see is a pair of glowing eyes reflecting back from your headlamp?

What I am looking for is some kind of reference that indicates what animal reflects back what color eyes. As I inderstand things, the color reflected back is likley to be different, depending on the species. That was confirmend by google, but I couldn't find anything regarding specifics.

Rick B

[Footslogger]

Has anyone wondered about what kind of animal is out there in the dark, when the only thing you see is a pair of glowing eyes reflecting back from your headlamp?

What I am looking for is some kind of reference that indicates what animal reflects back what color eyes. As I inderstand things, the color reflected back is likley to be different, depending on the species. That was confirmend by google, but I couldn't find anything regarding specifics.

Rick B

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Don't have the website reference or citation but I had the personal experience of viewing a coyote in the dark by Abol Bridge in 2001. I saw the animal in the beam thrown by an overhead light so I knew it was a coyote. We shined our headlamps in the direction of the coyote and sat still for moment. The animal stopped and looked right back at us with a set of orangish eyes. REALLY WIERD !!

'Slogger
AT 2003

[rickb]

Cool. About all I know is that a deer's are bright white.

[Footslogger]

Cool. About all I know is that a deer's are bright white.

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Yeah ...and the "human" animal's eye's are RED because of the blood vessels on the retina. I think it all has to do with the absorption/reflection characteristics on the back of the eye. Animals have a different membrane that "intensifies" the light but (like you) I have never heard an explanation as to the differences in color reflection at night.

'Slogger

[Footslogger]

Rick ...I just shot off an e-mail to the Veternary Medical Science department at the University of Wyoming here in Laramie. Will let you know what type of response I get.

'Slogger

[flyfisher]

From walking back to my barn on many a dark night with a head lamp:

Deer: white
Cats: white and very bright
Sheep: redish and dim
Spiders: very small and white.

[Footslogger]

OK Rick ...here's the "official" answer from the Department of Veternary Medicine at the University of Wyoming ...'Slogger
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"Different species have different kinds of a tapetum, which is the reflective layer under the retinal pigment epithelium. In some species (cats and dogs) it is in cells with zinc-rich rods that are spaced (from memory) half a wavelength of light apart. Cats have a big tapetum since they are nocturnal, and dogs a small one. Other species (sheep, cattle and horses) have an extracellular tapetum composed of collagen laid in orthogonal arrays. This gives rise to different reflective hues. Any disease in the overlying sensory or nonsensory retina will have an effect on the reflectivity of the tapetum. Increased reflectivity is one of the standard criteria for retinal atrophy in domestic animals.

The tapetum is an astonishing and intriguing biological structures to look at, especially with an electron microscope."
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[whitedove]

Interesting question!

I have no clue so I asked your question on a site, the
Electronic Naturalist, and here is the answer. As you can see it doesn't say much more than has been posted already. Sorry.


A: There is a layer in the back of the eyes of some animals called the
tapedum lucidum (ta-PEE-tum LOO-sih-dum) that reflects light back into
the eye to help with vision. You are correct in thinking that there
are different colors from different animals. A bear's eye shines a deep
red, a deer's shines orange-yellow, while a cat's shows a greenish tint,
I believe sharks are rather green, and of course, humans have a pale
red or orangish color. Hope this helps.

John Wiessinger, 02/15/2005 19:47:28

[lostjohn]

Ever so often we have a fox in our yard. At night when I shine a light on them the eyes are a bright ruby color.

[Flash Hand]

I just wish that no animals have reflective eyes during night. They usually got my heart racing easily. Thats why I don't want to hike during dark.

Flash Hand

[RockyTrail]

My dog will tree a possum every so often in my backyard. When I go out and shine my flashlight on it I see a pair of beady red eyes, usually bright red.

[DebW]

I guess distance between the eyes might also be a clue as to what animal you are looking at. Anybody has a table of eye separation distances?

[rickb]

Deb,

You may laugh, but if you ever hike at night on the Bay Circuit Trail behind Harvard's Primate Research Center, you might find it very comforting to know that deer eyes reflect white, and apes not at all.

That is experience speaking. ;-)

Rick B

[Dances with Mice]

I guess distance between the eyes might also be a clue as to what animal you are looking at. Anybody has a table of eye separation distances?

To answer the question first: No.

To tell a sorta relevant story: At my son's summer Scout camp I was sleeping on the wooden floor of a tent platform because I was too tall for, and my Thermarest was more comfortable than, the supplied cots. I heard a critter rustling around the platform. It kept getting closer and closer. I hissed "Shoo! Go away!" It didn't. I tried to find my flashlight in the dark. I couldn't.

BUT I just happened to have had three red plastic balls, about 3 inches diameter, that contained internal LEDs that lit up for about 15 seconds after they were struck. Night time props for juggling, another hobby of mine. Anyway, I found two, struck them together to set off the flashing red LEDs then held them out at arm's distance towards the noise to see if I could ID the critter.

I never saw it but I could hear it crashing through the woods away from our camp. Very good. I went back to sleep.

I imagined some 'coon, 'possum, or skunk rushing back to its nest to report to its family: "I don't know what it was, but it was HUGE! It had eyes THIS BIG and THIS FAR apart!"

[RockyTrail]

Deb,

You may laugh, but if you ever hike at night on the Bay Circuit Trail behind Harvard's Primate Research Center, you might find it very comforting to know that deer eyes reflect white, and apes not at all.

Ha, that's funny, I have a friend who lives in a subdivision that's next to Emory University's primate center in the north Atlanta suburbs. A few years ago they had some chimps on the loose that escaped from the center and ran around his neighborhood, that was quite a sight! They were all recovered and taken home. It was in the daytime, so there was no reflector-eyes to be seen.

[dp the wonder dog]

Fun with newbies at a shelter:

get some of the reflective dots that they sell in hunting stores, that are made for marking a night-time trail for hunters. put them on trees, in pairs, 2-4 feet from the ground, starting about 30' feet out.

Now imagine being a newbie, turning your light out towards the woods, and seeing dozens of "eyes" staring back at you.

have fun, clean up after yourselves.

[nthadley]

I had no idea there were SO MANY spiders on the ground until I purchased a headlamp!

[darkoneswing_2007]

Cool. About all I know is that a deer's are bright white.

The deer eyes ive seen here in la dont glow white in light the bucks or male deer glow a bright yellow and are wide apart where the female or doe will tend to be more green and closer together also the male will tend to raise his head to look where the doe will lower her head and try to look under it.this is why you will see more doe on the side of the road hit by cars

[darkoneswing_2007]

dont wanna do that here youd have hundreds of coon asses shooting at your trees

[Bob S]

Just buy night vision goggles and it will tell you what animal is about to have you for dinner.