When you visit a park at full spring you spot vibrant shades of colors like a color catalog is displayed in front of your eyes. You witness shades from blue to yellow, green, red, pink, purple, orange, cherry, etc. You can see cats walking around casually. Have you ever thought, out of curiosity, that what colors do cats see? Can cats identify each color? Are cats color blind or they can see mother nature blooming? Do cats have black and white vision?

Well, my friend, let us break it down to you that cats can see the world as colorful and bright as you see with your human eye! Many questions arise in your mind at this point and you are going to find the answers down here.

• Are cats color blind?
• What colors do cats see best?
• What colors do cats see best in darkness?
• What about Blacklight or UV Light?
• Comparison with human vision.

Let’s find out the answers of these most frequently asked questions .

Are Cats color blind?

While we humans are spoiled by the range of colors we see and their vibrancy, life through a cat’s eyes works well for the functions they need to perform. We can help them along by choosing toys in colors. Well, thanks to the big amounts of rods in their retina, cats are much better at seeing in the dark than people. However, they still need a source of light, even the slightest, such as the very early or very late sunlight, the moonlight, or a really little lamp. They are most active in the dusk and dawn hours. Cats can see during twilight or dawn hours, in extreme low lights, and near-dark conditions, but not in the complete darkness.

Can Cats See Color at all?

Color is discerned by the nerve cells in the eye. The retina of the cat’s eye has two main cells: cones and rods. The ability to identify colors is determined by the cones in the retina.

Humans have 10 times more cones than cats and that’s why humans can see every combination of blue, red, and green. In scientific observations, cats can’t see the full range of colors but the most easily seen colors to these species are the shade of blue hues. It is the myth that cats can only see in black and white but this is not true. They do see colors but can’t distinguish between them as the humans do. Cats can’t see the difference between the colors yellow, green, and red. When compared to humans, cats see better in dim light and more accurately detect motion.

What Colors Do Cats See Best?

Blue-violet hues are easier for cats to detect, but yellow-green wavelengths of light are also visible to them. Cats, unfortunately, are unable to detect red-orange hues. You’re probably perplexed as to why your cat can’t detect red hues even though a favorite play toy is a bright red laser pointer. Shades of pink also confuse them as this color may appear greener to the cat, while purple can look like another shade of blue.

What Colors Do Cats See Best in Darkness?

Humans are better than cats at night vision, with night vision cameras…….. lol.

Can cats see in complete darkness? No, but ………

The vision is developed only by the light receptors in the eyes which are called rods. So the light is a must-have, but, Cats have 8 to 10 times more rods in their eyes. So you can imagine how far better vision cats have during the night. A slight amount of light undetectable by human eyes is sufficient for Cats to see and perform their routine activities.

Another awesome adon in the Cat’s eye is tapetum lucidum. The tapetum lucidum is the finest, slim, reflective layer right behind the retina. Cats can see in dim light because Tapetum lucidum reflects light outwards, which develops an impressive vision.

However, what colors do cats see best in darkness, is not 100% verified and accurate. However, it is believed that as the darkness prevails the vision of our cats becomes colorless i.e. black and white. Cones in the cats’ eyes which detect colors are almost 10 times less than the human eyes. That’s why cats are unaware of huge amounts of shades of colors. Still, research on this topic is going on.

What about Blacklight or UV light? What Does Cat see in UV light?

Ultraviolet or blacklight is invisible to humans, so in a room with only this kind of lamp, it will be completely dark to us, but not to cats, and some other animals. Cats can’t see fine detail or rich color but have a superior ability to see in the dark because of the high number of rods in their retina that are sensitive to dim light. The lens in human eyes blocks it, but cat eyes allow ultraviolet transmission. Cats can see with around one-sixth the amount of light required by humans.

Comparison with human vision

Cats have eyes that are set more on the sides of the head, which allows them a broader range of peripheral vision than we have. Because space on the retina is limited, more rods necessarily mean fewer cones and vice versa. Because cats have evolved to hunt in darker environments, their eyes are packed with considerably more rods than cones. As a result, they can seemingly “see in the dark” and detect the slightest motion, but their perception of colors is relatively poor. Cats have a slighter wider visual of 200 degrees compared to the average human visual of 180 degrees. A cat has to be at 20 feet to see what an average human can see at 100 or 200 feet.

Color of The Eye and Does It affect The Vision?

A cat’s eyes can range in color from yellowish-green to gooseberry-green to darker greens to blue-toned greens. Green eyes may be found in breeds like the Egyptian Mau, which has a brilliant gooseberry color with green eyes. They are also seen in Russian Blue cats and a rare sight can be seen where there are two colors of the eyes like the left is yellow and right is blue.

But these colors don’t affect the vision of the eye or the ability of the eye to see colors. Eye color is genetically linked to coat color. Kittens are born with blue eyes, which may stay that way or change color as the kitten matures. For instance, all pointed cats have blue eyes. Cats who are solid white or mostly white may have blue, green, gold, or copper eyes.

Conclusion

Cats are the home pets that are most loved by humans. People wonder whether cats can see colors or not. Many people believe that the cats are color blind and see only black and white. But it is not true. They can’t see the full range of colors but can see shades of blue hues easily. Cats could see during dusk or dawn, in pretty low light, and in relatively dark but not in absolute darkness.

Cats have a structure behind the retina, called the tapetum, that is thought to improve night vision. The tapetum’s cells operate as a mirror, reflecting light that passes between the rods and cones back to the photoreceptors, giving them a second chance to pick up the limited quantity of light accessible at night. Cats’ eyes glow and shine in the darkness because of this. They are not completely blind but can recognize shades of yellow, green, or bright red better.