Vision
Vision, Visions, or The Vision may refer to:
Perception Optical perception
* Visual perception, the sense of sight
* Visual system, the physical mechanism of eyesight
* Computer vision, a field dealing with how computers can be made to gain und ...
is an important
sensory system
The sensory nervous system is a part of the nervous system responsible for processing sensory information. A sensory system consists of sensory neurons (including the sensory receptor cells), neural pathways, and parts of the brain involved ...
for most species of
fish
A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic animal, aquatic, Anamniotes, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fish fin, fins and craniate, a hard skull, but lacking limb (anatomy), limbs with digit (anatomy), digits. Fish can ...
. Fish
eye
An eye is a sensory organ that allows an organism to perceive visual information. It detects light and converts it into electro-chemical impulses in neurons (neurones). It is part of an organism's visual system.
In higher organisms, the ey ...
s are similar to the eyes of
terrestrial
Terrestrial refers to things related to land or the planet Earth, as opposed to extraterrestrial.
Terrestrial may also refer to:
* Terrestrial animal, an animal that lives on land opposed to living in water, or sometimes an animal that lives on o ...
vertebrate
Vertebrates () are animals with a vertebral column (backbone or spine), and a cranium, or skull. The vertebral column surrounds and protects the spinal cord, while the cranium protects the brain.
The vertebrates make up the subphylum Vertebra ...
s like
birds
Birds are a group of warm-blooded vertebrates constituting the class (biology), class Aves (), characterised by feathers, toothless beaked jaws, the Oviparity, laying of Eggshell, hard-shelled eggs, a high Metabolism, metabolic rate, a fou ...
and mammals, but have a more
spherical
A sphere (from Ancient Greek, Greek , ) is a surface (mathematics), surface analogous to the circle, a curve. In solid geometry, a sphere is the Locus (mathematics), set of points that are all at the same distance from a given point in three ...
lens
A lens is a transmissive optical device that focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements'') ...
. Birds and mammals (including humans) normally adjust
focus
Focus (: foci or focuses) may refer to:
Arts
* Focus or Focus Festival, former name of the Adelaide Fringe arts festival in East Australia Film
*Focus (2001 film), ''Focus'' (2001 film), a 2001 film based on the Arthur Miller novel
*Focus (2015 ...
by changing the shape of their lens, but fish normally adjust focus by moving the lens closer to or further from the
retina
The retina (; or retinas) is the innermost, photosensitivity, light-sensitive layer of tissue (biology), tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some Mollusca, molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focus (optics), focused two-dimensional ...
. Fish retinas generally have both
rod cell
Rod cells are photoreceptor cells in the retina of the eye that can function in lower light better than the other type of visual photoreceptor, cone cells. Rods are usually found concentrated at the outer edges of the retina and are used in ...
s and
cone cell
Cone cells or cones are photoreceptor cells in the retina of the vertebrate eye. Cones are active in daylight conditions and enable photopic vision, as opposed to rod cells, which are active in dim light and enable scotopic vision. Most v ...
s (for
scotopic
In the study of visual perception, scotopic vision (or scotopia) is the vision of the eye under low-light conditions. The term comes from the Greek ''skotos'', meaning 'darkness', and ''-opia'', meaning 'a condition of sight'. In the human eye, co ...
and
photopic vision
Photopic vision is the vision of the eye under well-lit conditions (luminance levels from 10 to 108 cd/m2). In humans and many other animals, photopic vision allows color perception, mediated by cone cells, and a significantly higher vis ...
), and most species have
colour vision
Color vision, a feature of visual perception, is an ability to perceive differences between light composed of different frequencies independently of light intensity.
Color perception is a part of the larger visual system and is mediated by a co ...
. Some fish can see
ultraviolet
Ultraviolet radiation, also known as simply UV, is electromagnetic radiation of wavelengths of 10–400 nanometers, shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation is present in sunlight and constitutes about 10% of ...
and some are sensitive to
polarised light
, or , is a property of transverse waves which specifies the geometrical orientation of the oscillations. In a transverse wave, the direction of the oscillation is perpendicular to the direction of motion of the wave. One example of a polarize ...
.
Among
jawless fishes, the
lamprey
Lampreys (sometimes inaccurately called lamprey eels) are a group of Agnatha, jawless fish comprising the order (biology), order Petromyzontiformes , sole order in the Class (biology), class Petromyzontida. The adult lamprey is characterize ...
has well-developed eyes, while the
hagfish
Hagfish, of the Class (biology), class Myxini (also known as Hyperotreti) and Order (biology), order Myxiniformes , are eel-shaped Agnatha, jawless fish (occasionally called slime eels). Hagfish are the only known living Animal, animals that h ...
has only primitive
eyespots.
[ See als]
Lamb et al.'s The origin of the Vertebrate Eye, 2008.
/ref> The ancestors of modern hagfish, thought to be the protovertebrate, were evidently pushed to very deep, dark waters, where they were less vulnerable to sighted predators, and where it is advantageous to have a convex eye-spot, which gathers more light than a flat or concave one. Fish vision shows evolutionary adaptation
In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the p ...
to their visual environment, for example deep sea fish
Deep-sea fish are fish that live in the darkness below the sunlit surface waters, that is below the epipelagic or photic zone of the sea. The lanternfish is, by far, the most common deep-sea fish. Other deep-sea fishes include the flashlight f ...
have eyes suited to the dark environment.
Water as a visual environment
Fish and other aquatic animals live in a different light environment than terrestrial species do. Water
Water is an inorganic compound with the chemical formula . It is a transparent, tasteless, odorless, and Color of water, nearly colorless chemical substance. It is the main constituent of Earth's hydrosphere and the fluids of all known liv ...
absorbs light
Light, visible light, or visible radiation is electromagnetic radiation that can be visual perception, perceived by the human eye. Visible light spans the visible spectrum and is usually defined as having wavelengths in the range of 400– ...
so that with increasing depth the amount of light available decreases quickly. The optical properties of water also lead to different wavelength
In physics and mathematics, wavelength or spatial period of a wave or periodic function is the distance over which the wave's shape repeats.
In other words, it is the distance between consecutive corresponding points of the same ''phase (waves ...
s of light being absorbed to different degrees. For example, visible light of long wavelengths (e.g. red, orange) is absorbed more in water than light of shorter wavelengths (green, blue). Ultraviolet light (even shorter wavelength than violet) can penetrate deeper than visual spectra. Besides these universal qualities of water, different bodies of water may absorb light of different wavelengths due to varying salt and/or chemical presence in the water.
Water is very effective at absorbing incoming light, so the amount of light penetrating the ocean declines rapidly (is attenuated) with depth. In clear ocean water, at one metre depth only 45% of the solar energy that falls on the ocean surface remains. At 10 metres depth only 16% of the light is still present, and only 1% of the original light is left at 100 metres. No light penetrates beyond 1000 metres.[Webb, Paul (2019]
''Introduction to Oceanography''
chapter 6.5 Light, Rebus Community, Roger Williams University, open textbook. Material was copied from this source, which is available under
Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License
In addition to overall attenuation, the oceans absorb the different wavelengths of light at different rates. The wavelengths at the extreme ends of the visible spectrum are attenuated faster than those wavelengths in the middle. Longer wavelengths are absorbed first. In clear ocean waters red is absorbed in the upper 10 metres, orange by about 40 metres, and yellow disappears before 100 metres. Shorter wavelengths penetrate further, with blue and green light reaching the deepest depths. This is why things appear blue underwater: how colours are perceived by the eye depends on the wavelengths of light that are received by the eye. An object appears red to the eye because it reflects red light and absorbs other colours. So the only colour reaching the eye is red. Blue is the only colour of light available at depth underwater, so it is the only colour that can be reflected back to the eye, and everything has a blue tinge under water. A red object at depth will not appear red because there is no red light available to reflect off of the object. Objects in water will only appear as their real colours near the surface where all wavelengths of light are still available, or if the other wavelengths of light are provided artificially, such as by illuminating the object with a dive light.
Structure and function
Fish eyes are broadly similar to those of other vertebrates – notably the tetrapod
A tetrapod (; from Ancient Greek :wiktionary:τετρα-#Ancient Greek, τετρα- ''(tetra-)'' 'four' and :wiktionary:πούς#Ancient Greek, πούς ''(poús)'' 'foot') is any four-Limb (anatomy), limbed vertebrate animal of the clade Tetr ...
s (amphibians, reptiles, birds and mammals – all of which evolved from a fish ancestor). Light enters the eye at the cornea
The cornea is the transparency (optics), transparent front part of the eyeball which covers the Iris (anatomy), iris, pupil, and Anterior chamber of eyeball, anterior chamber. Along with the anterior chamber and Lens (anatomy), lens, the cornea ...
, passing through the pupil
The pupil is a hole located in the center of the iris of the eye that allows light to strike the retina.Cassin, B. and Solomon, S. (1990) ''Dictionary of Eye Terminology''. Gainesville, Florida: Triad Publishing Company. It appears black becau ...
to reach the lens
A lens is a transmissive optical device that focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements'') ...
. Most fish species seem to have a fixed pupil size, but elasmobranch
Elasmobranchii () is a subclass of Chondrichthyes or cartilaginous fish, including modern sharks ( division Selachii), and batomorphs (division Batomorphi, including rays, skates, and sawfish). Members of this subclass are characterised by h ...
s (like sharks and rays) have a muscular iris
Iris most often refers to:
*Iris (anatomy), part of the eye
* Iris (color), an ambiguous color term
*Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess
* ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants
* Iris (given name), a feminine given name, and a list of peopl ...
which allows pupil diameter to be adjusted. Pupil shape varies, and may be e.g. circular or slit-like.
Lenses are normally spherical but can be slightly elliptical in some species. Compared to terrestrial vertebrates, fish lenses are generally more dense and spherical. In the aquatic environment there is not a major difference in the refractive index
In optics, the refractive index (or refraction index) of an optical medium is the ratio of the apparent speed of light in the air or vacuum to the speed in the medium. The refractive index determines how much the path of light is bent, or refrac ...
of the cornea and the surrounding water (compared to air on land) so the lens has to do the majority of the refraction. Due to "a refractive index
In optics, the refractive index (or refraction index) of an optical medium is the ratio of the apparent speed of light in the air or vacuum to the speed in the medium. The refractive index determines how much the path of light is bent, or refrac ...
gradient within the lens — exactly as one would expect from optical theory", the spherical lenses of fish are able to form sharp images free from spherical aberration
In optics, spherical aberration (SA) is a type of aberration found in optical systems that have elements with spherical surfaces. This phenomenon commonly affects lenses and curved mirrors, as these components are often shaped in a spherical ...
.
Once light passes through the lens, it is transmitted through a transparent liquid medium until it reaches the retina, containing the photoreceptors. Like other vertebrates, the photoreceptors are on the inside layer so light must pass through layers of other neuron
A neuron (American English), neurone (British English), or nerve cell, is an membrane potential#Cell excitability, excitable cell (biology), cell that fires electric signals called action potentials across a neural network (biology), neural net ...
s before it reaches them. The retina contains rod cells and cone cells.
There are similarities between fish eyes and those of other vertebrates. Usually, light enters through the fish eye at the cornea and passes through the pupil in order to reach the lens. Most fish species have a fixed size of the pupil while a few species have a muscular iris that allows for the adjustment of the pupil diameter.
Fish eyes have a more spherical lens than other terrestrial vertebrates. Adjustment of focus in mammals and birds is normally done by changing the shape of the eye lens while in fish this is done through moving the lens further from or closer to the retina. The retina of a fish generally has both rod cells and cone cells that are responsible for scotopic and photopic vision. Most fish species have color vision. There are some species that are capable of seeing ultraviolet while some are sensitive to polarized light.
The fish retina has rod cells that provide high visual sensitivity in low light conditions and cone cells that provide higher temporal and spatial resolution than the rod cells are capable of. They allow for the possibility of color vision through the comparison of absorbance across different types of cones. According to Marshall ''et al.'', most animals in the marine habitat possess no or relatively simple color vision. However, there is a greater diversity in color vision in the ocean than there is on land. This is mainly due to extremes in photic habitat and colour behaviours.
The retina
Within the retina, rod cells
Rod cells are photoreceptor cells in the retina of the eye that can function in lower light better than the other type of visual photoreceptor, cone cells. Rods are usually found concentrated at the outer edges of the retina and are used in pe ...
provide high visual sensitivity (at the cost of acuity), being used in low light conditions. Cone cells provide higher spatial and temporal resolution than rods can, and allow for the possibility of colour vision by comparing absorbances across different types of cones which are more sensitive to different wavelengths. The ratio of rods to cones depends on the ecology of the fish species concerned, ''e.g.'', those mainly active during the day in clear waters will have more cones than those living in low light environments. Colour vision is more useful in environments with a broader range of wavelengths available, ''e.g.'', near the surface in clear waters rather than in deeper water where only a narrow band of wavelengths persist.
The distribution of photoreceptors across the retina is not uniform. Some areas have higher densities of cone cells, for example (see fovea
Fovea () (Latin for "pit"; plural foveae ) is a term in anatomy. It refers to a pit or depression in a structure.
Human anatomy
*Fovea centralis of the retina
* Fovea buccalis or dimple
* Fovea of the femoral head
* Trochlear fovea of the fr ...
). Fish may have two or three areas specialised for high acuity (e.g. for prey capture) or sensitivity (e.g. from dim light coming from below). The distribution of photoreceptors may also change over time during development of the individual. This is especially the case when the species typically moves between different light environments during its life cycle (e.g. shallow to deep waters, or fresh water to ocean). or when food spectrum changes accompany the growth of a fish as seen with the Antarctic icefish Champsocephalus gunnari
''Champsocephalus'' is a genus of marine ray-finned fish belonging to the family Channichthyidae, the crocodile icefishes. They are native to the Southern Ocean.
Taxonomy
''Champsocephalus'' was first formally described as a genus in 1862 by the ...
.
Some species have a tapetum, a reflective layer which bounces light that passes through the retina back through it again. This enhances sensitivity in low light conditions, such as nocturnal and deep sea species, by giving photons a second chance to be captured by photoreceptors. However this comes at a cost of reduced resolution. Some species are able to effectively turn their tapetum off in bright conditions, with a dark pigment layer covering it as needed.
The retina uses a lot of oxygen compared to most other tissues, and is supplied with plentiful oxygenated blood to ensure optimal performance.
Accommodation
Accommodation is the process by which the vertebrate eye adjusts focus
Focus (: foci or focuses) may refer to:
Arts
* Focus or Focus Festival, former name of the Adelaide Fringe arts festival in East Australia Film
*Focus (2001 film), ''Focus'' (2001 film), a 2001 film based on the Arthur Miller novel
*Focus (2015 ...
on an object as it moves closer or further away. Whereas birds and mammals achieve accommodation by deforming the lens of their eyes, fish and amphibian
Amphibians are ectothermic, anamniote, anamniotic, tetrapod, four-limbed vertebrate animals that constitute the class (biology), class Amphibia. In its broadest sense, it is a paraphyletic group encompassing all Tetrapod, tetrapods, but excl ...
s normally adjust focus
Focus (: foci or focuses) may refer to:
Arts
* Focus or Focus Festival, former name of the Adelaide Fringe arts festival in East Australia Film
*Focus (2001 film), ''Focus'' (2001 film), a 2001 film based on the Arthur Miller novel
*Focus (2015 ...
by moving the lens closer or further from the retina. They use a special muscle which changes the distance of the lens from the retina. In bony fish
Osteichthyes ( ; ), also known as osteichthyans or commonly referred to as the bony fish, is a Biodiversity, diverse clade of vertebrate animals that have endoskeletons primarily composed of bone tissue. They can be contrasted with the Chondricht ...
es the muscle is called the ''retractor lentis'', and is relaxed for near vision, whereas for cartilaginous fish
Chondrichthyes (; ) is a class of jawed fish that contains the cartilaginous fish or chondrichthyans, which all have skeletons primarily composed of cartilage. They can be contrasted with the Osteichthyes or ''bony fish'', which have skeleto ...
es the muscle is called the ''protractor lentis'', and is relaxed for far vision. Thus bony fishes accommodate for distance vision by moving the lens closer to the retina, while cartilaginous fishes accommodate for near vision by moving the lens further from the retina.
Stabilising images
There is a need for some mechanism that stabilises images during rapid head movements. This is achieved by the vestibulo-ocular reflex
The vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) is a reflex that acts to stabilize Gaze (physiology), gaze during head movement, with eye movement due to activation of the vestibular system, it is also known as the cervico-ocular reflex. The reflex acts to im ...
, which is a reflex
In biology, a reflex, or reflex action, is an involuntary, unplanned sequence or action and nearly instantaneous response to a stimulus.
Reflexes are found with varying levels of complexity in organisms with a nervous system. A reflex occurs ...
eye movement
Eye movement includes the voluntary or involuntary movement of the eyes. Eye movements are used by a number of organisms (e.g. primates, rodents, flies, birds, fish, cats, crabs, octopus) to fixate, inspect and track visual objects of inte ...
that stabilises images on the retina
The retina (; or retinas) is the innermost, photosensitivity, light-sensitive layer of tissue (biology), tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some Mollusca, molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focus (optics), focused two-dimensional ...
by producing eye movements in the direction opposite to head movements, thus preserving the image on the centre of the visual field. For example, when the head moves to the right, the eyes move to the left, and vice versa. The human vestibulo-ocular reflex is a reflex
In biology, a reflex, or reflex action, is an involuntary, unplanned sequence or action and nearly instantaneous response to a stimulus.
Reflexes are found with varying levels of complexity in organisms with a nervous system. A reflex occurs ...
eye movement
Eye movement includes the voluntary or involuntary movement of the eyes. Eye movements are used by a number of organisms (e.g. primates, rodents, flies, birds, fish, cats, crabs, octopus) to fixate, inspect and track visual objects of inte ...
that stabilises images on the retina
The retina (; or retinas) is the innermost, photosensitivity, light-sensitive layer of tissue (biology), tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some Mollusca, molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focus (optics), focused two-dimensional ...
during head movement by producing an eye movement in the direction opposite to head movement, thus preserving the image on the center of the visual field. In a similar manner, fish have a vestibulo-ocular reflex which stabilises visual images on the retina when it moves its tail. In many animals, including human beings, the inner ear
The inner ear (internal ear, auris interna) is the innermost part of the vertebrate ear. In vertebrates, the inner ear is mainly responsible for sound detection and balance. In mammals, it consists of the bony labyrinth, a hollow cavity in the ...
functions as the biological analogue of an accelerometer
An accelerometer is a device that measures the proper acceleration of an object. Proper acceleration is the acceleration (the rate of change (mathematics), rate of change of velocity) of the object relative to an observer who is in free fall (tha ...
in camera image stabilization systems, to stabilise the image by moving the eye
An eye is a sensory organ that allows an organism to perceive visual information. It detects light and converts it into electro-chemical impulses in neurons (neurones). It is part of an organism's visual system.
In higher organisms, the ey ...
s. When a rotation of the head is detected, an inhibitory signal is sent to the extraocular muscles
The extraocular muscles, or extrinsic ocular muscles, are the seven extrinsic muscles of the eye in human eye, humans and other animals. Six of the extraocular muscles, the four recti muscles, and the superior oblique muscle, superior and inferior ...
on one side and an excitatory signal to the muscles on the other side. The result is a compensatory movement of the eyes. Typical human eye movements lag head movements by less than 10 ms.
The diagram on the right shows the horizontal vestibulo-ocular reflex
The vestibulo-ocular reflex (VOR) is a reflex that acts to stabilize Gaze (physiology), gaze during head movement, with eye movement due to activation of the vestibular system, it is also known as the cervico-ocular reflex. The reflex acts to im ...
circuitry in bony
Bony may refer to:
* Adjective relating to bone
People
* Bony Dashaco, Cameroonian businessman
* Bony King, Belgian singer-songwriter
* Bony Pierre (born 1991), Haitian footballer
* Bony Ramirez (born 1996), Dominican-born American painter and ...
and cartilaginous fish
Chondrichthyes (; ) is a class of jawed fish that contains the cartilaginous fish or chondrichthyans, which all have skeletons primarily composed of cartilage. They can be contrasted with the Osteichthyes or ''bony fish'', which have skeleto ...
.
* "Goldfish" shows the principal three-neuronal vestibulo-ocular reflex linking the horizontal semicircular canal
The semicircular canals are three semicircular interconnected tubes located in the innermost part of each ear, the inner ear. The three canals are the lateral, anterior and posterior semicircular canals. They are the part of the bony labyrinth, ...
with contralateral
Standard anatomical terms of location are used to describe unambiguously the anatomy of humans and other animals. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...
abducens
The abducens nerve or abducent nerve, also known as the sixth cranial nerve, cranial nerve VI, or simply CN VI, is a cranial nerve in humans and various other animals that controls the movement of the lateral rectus muscle, one of the extraocula ...
(ABD) and ipsilateral
Standard anatomical terms of location are used to describe unambiguously the anatomy of humans and other animals. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...
MR motoneuron
A motor neuron (or motoneuron), also known as efferent neuron is a neuron whose cell body is located in the motor cortex, brainstem or the spinal cord, and whose axon (fiber) projects to the spinal cord or outside of the spinal cord to directly o ...
s.
* "Flatfish" shows that after 90° displacement of the vestibular relative to visual axis (metamorphosis) compensatory eye movements are produced by redirecting horizontal canal signals to vertical and oblique motoneurons.
* In "Shark" horizontal canal/second order neuron
A neuron (American English), neurone (British English), or nerve cell, is an membrane potential#Cell excitability, excitable cell (biology), cell that fires electric signals called action potentials across a neural network (biology), neural net ...
s project to contralateral
Standard anatomical terms of location are used to describe unambiguously the anatomy of humans and other animals. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...
ABD and MR motoneurons including ipsilateral
Standard anatomical terms of location are used to describe unambiguously the anatomy of humans and other animals. The terms, typically derived from Latin or Greek roots, describe something in its standard anatomical position. This position prov ...
AI neurons. 1°, first order vestibular
The Vestibular (from , "entrance hall") is a competitive examination and is the primary and widespread entrance system used by Brazilian universities to select the students admitted.
The Vestibular usually takes place from November to January, ...
neuron; ATD, Ascending tract of Deiter's
The lateral vestibular nucleus (Deiters's nucleus) is the continuation upward and lateralward of the principal nucleus, and in it terminate many of the ascending branches of the vestibular nerve.
Structure
It consists of very large multipolar ce ...
.
Ultraviolet
Fish vision is mediated by four visual pigments that absorb various wavelengths of light. Each pigment is constructed from a chromophore
A chromophore is the part of a molecule responsible for its color. The word is derived .
The color that is seen by our eyes is that of the light not Absorption (electromagnetic radiation), absorbed by the reflecting object within a certain wavele ...
and the transmembrane protein, known as opsin
Animal opsins are G-protein-coupled receptors and a group of proteins made light-sensitive via a chromophore, typically retinal. When bound to retinal, opsins become retinylidene proteins, but are usually still called opsins regardless. Most pro ...
. Mutations in opsin have allowed for visual diversity, including variation in wavelength absorption. A mutation of the opsin on the SWS-1 pigment allows some vertebrates to absorb UV light (≈360 nm), so they can see objects that reflect UV light. A wide range of fish species has developed and maintained this visual trait throughout evolution, suggesting it is advantageous. UV vision may be related to foraging, communication, and mate selection.
The leading theory regarding the evolutionary selection of UV vision in select fish species is due to its strong role in mate selection. Behavioral experiments show that African cichlids utilise visual cues when choosing a mate. Their breeding sites are typically in shallow waters with high clarity and UV light penetration. Male African cichlids are largely a blue colour that is reflective in UV light. Females are able to correctly choose a mate of their species when these reflective visual cues are present. This suggests that UV light detection is crucial for correct mate selection. UV reflective colour patterns also enhance male attractiveness in guppies and three-spined sticklebacks. In experimental settings, female guppies spent significantly more time inspecting males with UV-reflective colouring than those with UV reflection blocked. Similarly, female three-spined sticklebacks preferred males viewed in full spectrum over those viewed in UV blocking filters. These results strongly suggest the role of UV detection in sexual selection and, thus, reproductive fitness. The prominent role of UV light detection in fish mate choice
Mate choice is one of the primary mechanisms under which evolution can occur. It is characterized by a "selective response by animals to particular stimuli" which can be observed as behavior.Bateson, Paul Patrick Gordon. "Mate Choice." Mate Choi ...
has allowed the trait to be maintained over time.
UV vision may also be related to foraging and other communication behaviors.
Many species of fish can see the ultraviolet
Ultraviolet radiation, also known as simply UV, is electromagnetic radiation of wavelengths of 10–400 nanometers, shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation is present in sunlight and constitutes about 10% of ...
end of the spectrum, beyond the violet.
Ultraviolet vision is sometimes used during only part of the life cycle of a fish. For example, juvenile brown trout
The brown trout (''Salmo trutta'') is a species of salmonid ray-finned fish and the most widely distributed species of the genus ''Salmo'', endemic to most of Europe, West Asia and parts of North Africa, and has been widely introduced globally ...
live in shallow water where they use ultraviolet vision to enhance their ability to detect zooplankton
Zooplankton are the heterotrophic component of the planktonic community (the " zoo-" prefix comes from ), having to consume other organisms to thrive. Plankton are aquatic organisms that are unable to swim effectively against currents. Consequent ...
. As they get older, they move to deeper waters where there is little ultraviolet light.
The two stripe damselfish, ''Dascyllus reticulatus'', has ultraviolet-reflecting colouration which they appear to use as an alarm signal
In animal communication, an alarm signal is an antipredator adaptation in the form of signals emitted by social animals in response to danger. Many primates and birds have elaborate alarm calls for warning conspecifics of approaching predators ...
to other fish of their species. Predator
Predation is a biological interaction in which one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common List of feeding behaviours, feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation ...
y species cannot see this if their vision is not sensitive to ultraviolet. There is further evidence for this view that some fish use ultraviolet as a "high-fidelity secret communication channel hidden from predators", while yet other species use ultraviolet to make social or sexual signals.
Polarised light
It is not easy to establish whether a fish is sensitive to polarised light
, or , is a property of transverse waves which specifies the geometrical orientation of the oscillations. In a transverse wave, the direction of the oscillation is perpendicular to the direction of motion of the wave. One example of a polarize ...
, though it appears likely in a number of taxa. It has been unambiguously demonstrated in anchovies
An anchovy is a small, common forage fish of the family Engraulidae. Most species are found in marine waters, but several will enter brackish water, and some in South America are restricted to fresh water.
More than 140 species are placed in 1 ...
.
The ability to detect polarised light may provide better contrast and/or directional information for migrating species. Polarised light is most abundant at dawn and dusk. Polarised light reflected from the scales of a fish may enable other fish to better detect it against a diffuse background, and may provide useful information to schooling fish about their proximity and orientation relative to neighbouring fish. Some experiments indicate that, by using polarization, some fish can tune their vision to give them double their normal prey sighting distance.
Double cones
Most fish have double cones, a pair of cone cells joined to each other. Each member of the double cone may have a different peak absorbance, and behavioural evidence supports the idea that each type of individual cone in a double cone can provide separate information (i.e. the signal from individual members of the double cone are not necessarily summed together).
Adaptation to habitat
Fishes that live in surface waters down to about 200 metres, epipelagic fish
Pelagic fish live in the pelagic zone of ocean or lake waters—being neither close to the bottom nor near the shore—in contrast with demersal fish that live on or near the bottom, and reef fish that are associated with coral reefs.
...
es, live in a sunlit zone where visual predators use visual systems which are designed pretty much as might be expected. But even so, there can be unusual adaptations. Four-eyed fish
The four-eyed fishes are a genus, ''Anableps'', of fishes in the family Anablepidae. They have eyes raised above the top of the head and divided in two different parts, so that they can see below and above the water surface at the same time.
The ...
have eyes raised above the top of the head and divided in two different parts, so that they can see below and above the water surface at the same time. Four-eyed fish actually have only two eyes, but their eyes are specially adapted for their surface-dwelling lifestyle. The eyes are positioned on the top of the head, and the fish floats at the water surface with only the lower half of each eye underwater. The two halves are divided by a band of tissue and the eye has two pupil
The pupil is a hole located in the center of the iris of the eye that allows light to strike the retina.Cassin, B. and Solomon, S. (1990) ''Dictionary of Eye Terminology''. Gainesville, Florida: Triad Publishing Company. It appears black becau ...
s, connected by part of the iris
Iris most often refers to:
*Iris (anatomy), part of the eye
* Iris (color), an ambiguous color term
*Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess
* ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants
* Iris (given name), a feminine given name, and a list of peopl ...
. The upper half of the eye is adapted for vision in air, the lower half for vision in water. The lens of the eye changes in thickness top to bottom to account for the difference in the refractive indices
In optics, the refractive index (or refraction index) of an optical medium is the ratio of the apparent speed of light in the air or vacuum to the speed in the medium. The refractive index determines how much the path of light is bent, or refrac ...
of air versus water. These fish spend most of their time at the surface of the water. Their diet mostly consists of the terrestrial insects which are available at the surface.
Mesopelagic fish
Pelagic fish live in the pelagic zone of ocean or lake waters—being neither close to the bottom nor near the shore—in contrast with demersal fish that live on or near the bottom, and reef fish that are associated with coral reefs.
...
es live in deeper waters, in the twilight zone down to depths of 1000 metres, where the amount of sunlight available is not sufficient to support photosynthesis
Photosynthesis ( ) is a system of biological processes by which photosynthetic organisms, such as most plants, algae, and cyanobacteria, convert light energy, typically from sunlight, into the chemical energy necessary to fuel their metabo ...
. These fish are adapted for an active life under low light conditions. Most of them are visual predators with large eyes. Some of the deeper water fish have tubular eyes with big lenses and only rod cell
Rod cells are photoreceptor cells in the retina of the eye that can function in lower light better than the other type of visual photoreceptor, cone cells. Rods are usually found concentrated at the outer edges of the retina and are used in ...
s that look upwards. These give binocular vision and great sensitivity to small light signals. This adaptation gives improved terminal vision at the expense of lateral vision, and allows the predator to pick out squid
A squid (: squid) is a mollusc with an elongated soft body, large eyes, eight cephalopod limb, arms, and two tentacles in the orders Myopsida, Oegopsida, and Bathyteuthida (though many other molluscs within the broader Neocoleoidea are also ...
, cuttlefish
Cuttlefish, or cuttles, are Marine (ocean), marine Mollusca, molluscs of the order (biology), suborder Sepiina. They belong to the class (biology), class Cephalopoda which also includes squid, octopuses, and nautiluses. Cuttlefish have a unique ...
, and smaller fish that are silhouetted against the gloom above them. For more sensitive vision in low light, some fish have a retroreflector
A retroreflector (sometimes called a retroflector or cataphote) is a device or surface that reflects light or other radiation back to its source with minimum scattering. This works at a wide range of angle of incidence (optics), angle of incidenc ...
behind the retina
The retina (; or retinas) is the innermost, photosensitivity, light-sensitive layer of tissue (biology), tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some Mollusca, molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focus (optics), focused two-dimensional ...
. Flashlight fish have this plus photophore
A photophore is a specialized anatomical structure found in a variety of organisms that emits light through the process of boluminescence. This light may be produced endogenously by the organism itself (symbiotic) or generated through a mut ...
s, which they use in combination to detect eyeshine
The ; ; : tapeta lucida) is a layer of tissue in the eye of many vertebrates and some other animals. Lying immediately behind the retina, it is a retroreflector. It Reflection (physics), reflects visible light back through the retina, increas ...
in other fish.
Still deeper down the water column
The (oceanic) water column is a concept used in oceanography to describe the physical (temperature, salinity, light penetration) and chemical ( pH, dissolved oxygen, nutrient salts) characteristics of seawater at different depths for a defined ...
, below 1000 metres, are found the bathypelagic fish
Pelagic fish live in the pelagic zone of ocean or lake waters—being neither close to the bottom nor near the shore—in contrast with demersal fish that live on or near the bottom, and reef fish that are associated with coral reefs.
...
es. At this depth the ocean is pitch black, and the fish are sedentary, adapted to outputting minimum energy in a habitat with very little food and no sunlight. Bioluminescence
Bioluminescence is the emission of light during a chemiluminescence reaction by living organisms. Bioluminescence occurs in multifarious organisms ranging from marine vertebrates and invertebrates, as well as in some Fungus, fungi, microorgani ...
is the only light available at these depths. This lack of light means the organisms have to rely on senses other than vision. Their eyes are small and may not function at all.
At the very bottom of the ocean flatfish
A flatfish is a member of the Ray-finned fish, ray-finned demersal fish Order (biology), suborder Pleuronectoidei, also called the Heterosomata. In many species, both eyes lie on one side of the head, one or the other migrating through or around ...
can be found. Flatfish are benthic fish
Demersal fish, also known as groundfish, live and feed on or near the bottom of seas or lakes (the demersal zone).Walrond Carl . "Coastal fish - Fish of the open sea floor"Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Updated 2 March 2009 They oc ...
with a negative buoyancy so they can rest on the seafloor. Although flatfish are bottom dwellers, they are not usually deep sea fish, but are found mainly in estuaries and on the continental shelf. When flatfish larvae
A larva (; : larvae ) is a distinct juvenile form many animals undergo before metamorphosis into their next life stage. Animals with indirect developmental biology, development such as insects, some arachnids, amphibians, or cnidarians typical ...
hatch they have the elongated and symmetric shape of a typical bony fish
Osteichthyes ( ; ), also known as osteichthyans or commonly referred to as the bony fish, is a Biodiversity, diverse clade of vertebrate animals that have endoskeletons primarily composed of bone tissue. They can be contrasted with the Chondricht ...
. The larvae do not dwell on the bottom, but float in the sea as plankton
Plankton are the diverse collection of organisms that drift in Hydrosphere, water (or atmosphere, air) but are unable to actively propel themselves against ocean current, currents (or wind). The individual organisms constituting plankton are ca ...
. Eventually they start metamorphosing into the adult form. One of the eyes migrates across the top of the head and onto the other side of the body, leaving the fish blind on one side. The larva loses its swim bladder
The swim bladder, gas bladder, fish maw, or air bladder is an internal gas-filled organ (anatomy), organ in bony fish that functions to modulate buoyancy, and thus allowing the fish to stay at desired water depth without having to maintain lift ...
and spines, and sinks to the bottom, laying its blind side on the underlying surface. Richard Dawkins
Richard Dawkins (born 26 March 1941) is a British evolutionary biology, evolutionary biologist, zoologist, science communicator and author. He is an Oxford fellow, emeritus fellow of New College, Oxford, and was Simonyi Professor for the Publ ...
explains this as an example of evolutionary adaptation
In biology, adaptation has three related meanings. Firstly, it is the dynamic evolutionary process of natural selection that fits organisms to their environment, enhancing their evolutionary fitness. Secondly, it is a state reached by the p ...
...bony fish as a rule have a marked tendency to be flattened in a vertical direction.... It was natural, therefore, that when the ancestors of latfishtook to the sea bottom, they should have lain on one ''side''.... But this raised the problem that one eye was always looking down into the sand and was effectively useless. In evolution this problem was solved by the lower eye 'moving' round to the upper side.
File:Malacosteus.JPG, Most deep-sea fish cannot see red light. The deepwater stoplight loosejaw
The stoplight loosejaws are small, deep-sea Barbeled dragonfish, dragonfishes of the genus ''Malacosteus'', classified either within the subfamily Malacosteinae of the family Stomiidae, or in the separate family Malacosteidae. They are found wor ...
produces red bioluminescence so it can hunt with an effectively invisible beam of light.
File:Pseudopleuronectes americanus.jpg, When the larvae of a flatfish
A flatfish is a member of the Ray-finned fish, ray-finned demersal fish Order (biology), suborder Pleuronectoidei, also called the Heterosomata. In many species, both eyes lie on one side of the head, one or the other migrating through or around ...
grows, the eye on one side rotates to the other side so the fish can rest on the seafloor.
File:Auge einer Scholle.JPG, The European plaice
The European plaice (''Pleuronectes platessa''), commonly referred to as simply plaice, is a species of marine flatfish in the genus Pleuronectes of the family Pleuronectidae.
Description
The European plaice is characterized, on their dorsal ...
is a flatfish with raised eyes, so when it buries itself in sand for camouflage it can still see.
Prey usually have eyes on the sides of their head so they have a large field of view, from which to avoid predators. Predators usually have eyes in front of their head so they have better depth perception
Depth perception is the ability to perceive distance to objects in the world using the visual system and visual perception. It is a major factor in perceiving the world in three dimensions.
Depth sensation is the corresponding term for non-hum ...
. Benthic predators, like flatfish
A flatfish is a member of the Ray-finned fish, ray-finned demersal fish Order (biology), suborder Pleuronectoidei, also called the Heterosomata. In many species, both eyes lie on one side of the head, one or the other migrating through or around ...
, have eyes arranged so they have a binocular view of what is above them as they lie on the bottom.
Colouration
Fish have evolved sophisticated ways of using colouration. For example, prey fish
Forage fish, also called prey fish or bait fish, are small pelagic fish that feed on planktons (i.e. planktivores) and other small aquatic organisms (e.g. krill). They are in turn preyed upon by various predators including larger fish, seabird ...
have ways of using colouration to make it more difficult for visual predators to see them. In pelagic fish
Pelagic fish live in the pelagic zone of ocean or lake waters—being neither close to the bottom nor near the shore—in contrast with demersal fish that live on or near the bottom, and reef fish that are associated with coral reefs. ...
, these adaptations are mainly concerned with a reduction in silhouette, a form of camouflage
Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the b ...
. One method of achieving this is to reduce the area of their shadow by lateral compression of the body. Another method, also a form of camouflage, is by countershading
Countershading, or Thayer's law, is a method of camouflage in which animal coloration, an animal's coloration is darker on the top or upper side and lighter on the underside of the body. This pattern is found in many species of mammals, reptile ...
in the case of epipelagic fish
Pelagic fish live in the pelagic zone of ocean or lake waters—being neither close to the bottom nor near the shore—in contrast with demersal fish that live on or near the bottom, and reef fish that are associated with coral reefs.
...
and by counter-illumination
Counter-illumination is a method of active camouflage seen in marine animals such as firefly squid and midshipman fish, and in military prototypes, producing light to match their backgrounds in both brightness and wavelength.
Marine animals of ...
in the case of mesopelagic fish
Pelagic fish live in the pelagic zone of ocean or lake waters—being neither close to the bottom nor near the shore—in contrast with demersal fish that live on or near the bottom, and reef fish that are associated with coral reefs.
...
. Countershading is achieved by colouring the fish with darker pigments at the top and lighter pigments at the bottom in such a way that the colouring matches the background. When seen from the top, the darker dorsal area of the animal blends into the darkness of the water below, and when seen from below, the lighter ventral area blends into the sunlight from the surface. Counter illumination is achieved via bioluminescence
Bioluminescence is the emission of light during a chemiluminescence reaction by living organisms. Bioluminescence occurs in multifarious organisms ranging from marine vertebrates and invertebrates, as well as in some Fungus, fungi, microorgani ...
by the production of light from ventral photophore
A photophore is a specialized anatomical structure found in a variety of organisms that emits light through the process of boluminescence. This light may be produced endogenously by the organism itself (symbiotic) or generated through a mut ...
s, aimed at matching the light intensity from the underside of the fish with the light intensity from the background.
Benthic fish
Demersal fish, also known as groundfish, live and feed on or near the bottom of seas or lakes (the demersal zone).Walrond Carl . "Coastal fish - Fish of the open sea floor"Te Ara - the Encyclopedia of New Zealand. Updated 2 March 2009 They oc ...
, which rest on the seafloor, physically hide themselves by burrowing into sand or retreating into nooks and crannies, or camouflage themselves by blending into the background or by looking like a rock or piece of seaweed.
While these tools may be effective as predator avoidance mechanisms, they also serve as equally effective tools for the predators themselves. For example, the deepwater velvet belly lantern shark
The velvet belly lanternshark (or simply velvet belly) (''Etmopterus spinax'') is a species of dogfish shark in the family Etmopteridae. One of the most common deepwater sharks in the northeastern Atlantic Ocean, the velvet belly is found from Ic ...
uses counter-illumination to hide from its prey.
File:Bluefin-big.jpg, Epipelagic fish, like this Atlantic bluefin tuna
The Atlantic bluefin tuna (''Thunnus thynnus'') is a species of tuna in the family Scombridae. It is variously known as the northern bluefin tuna (mainly when including Pacific bluefin as a subspecies), giant bluefin tuna (for individuals excee ...
, are typically countershaded
Countershading, or Thayer's law, is a method of camouflage in which an animal's coloration is darker on the top or upper side and lighter on the underside of the body. This pattern is found in many species of mammals, reptiles, birds, fish, an ...
with silvery colours.
File:Chaetodon capistratus1.jpg, The foureye butterflyfish has false eyes on its back end, confusing predators about which is the front end of the fish.
File:John Dory drawing.jpg, The John Dory
John Dory, St Pierre, or Peter's fish, refers to fish of the genus ''Zeus'', especially ''Zeus faber'', of widespread distribution. It is an edible demersal coastal marine fish with a laterally compressed olive-yellow body which has a large dark ...
has a large eye spot in the middle of its body, confusing prey.
Some fish species also display false eyespots. The foureye butterflyfish gets its name from a large dark spot on the rear portion of each side of the body. This spot is surrounded by a brilliant white ring, resembling an eyespot. A black vertical bar on the head runs through the true eye, making it hard to see. This can result in a predator
Predation is a biological interaction in which one organism, the predator, kills and eats another organism, its prey. It is one of a family of common List of feeding behaviours, feeding behaviours that includes parasitism and micropredation ...
thinking the fish is bigger than it is, and confusing the back end with the front end. The butterflyfish's first instinct when threatened is to flee, putting the false eyespot closer to the predator than the head. Most predators aim for the eyes, and this false eyespot tricks the predator into believing that the fish will flee tail first.
The John Dory
John Dory, St Pierre, or Peter's fish, refers to fish of the genus ''Zeus'', especially ''Zeus faber'', of widespread distribution. It is an edible demersal coastal marine fish with a laterally compressed olive-yellow body which has a large dark ...
is a benthopelagic
The demersal zone is the part of the sea or ocean (or deep lake) consisting of the part of the water column near to (and significantly affected by) the seabed and the benthos. The demersal zone is just above the benthic zone and forms a layer of ...
coastal fish
Coastal fish, also called inshore fish or neritic fish, inhabit the sea between the shoreline and the edge of the continental shelf. Since the continental shelf is usually less than deep, it follows that pelagic coastal fish are generally ep ...
with a high laterally compressed body. Its body is so thin that it can hardly be seen from the front. It also has a large dark spot on both sides, which is used to flash an "evil eye" if danger approaches. The large eyes at the front of the head provide it with the bifocal vision and depth perception it needs to catch prey. The John Dory's eye spot on the side of its body also confuses prey, which is then sucked into its mouth.
Barreleyes
Barreleye
Barreleyes, also known as spook fish (a name also applied to several species of chimaera (fish), chimaera), are small deep-sea Argentiniformes, argentiniform fish comprising the family (biology), family Opisthoproctidae found in tropical-to-temp ...
s are a family of small, unusual-looking mesopelagic fishes, named for their barrel-shaped, tubular eyes which are generally directed upwards to detect the silhouettes of available prey. Barreleyes have large, telescoping eyes which dominate and protrude from the skull
The skull, or cranium, is typically a bony enclosure around the brain of a vertebrate. In some fish, and amphibians, the skull is of cartilage. The skull is at the head end of the vertebrate.
In the human, the skull comprises two prominent ...
. These eyes generally gaze upwards, but can also be swivelled forwards in some species. Their eyes have a large lens and a retina with an exceptional number of rod cell
Rod cells are photoreceptor cells in the retina of the eye that can function in lower light better than the other type of visual photoreceptor, cone cells. Rods are usually found concentrated at the outer edges of the retina and are used in ...
s and a high density of rhodopsin
Rhodopsin, also known as visual purple, is a protein encoded by the ''RHO'' gene and a G-protein-coupled receptor (GPCR). It is a light-sensitive receptor protein that triggers visual phototransduction in rod cells. Rhodopsin mediates dim ...
(the "visual purple" pigment); there are no cone cell
Cone cells or cones are photoreceptor cells in the retina of the vertebrate eye. Cones are active in daylight conditions and enable photopic vision, as opposed to rod cells, which are active in dim light and enable scotopic vision. Most v ...
s.
The barreleye species, ''Macropinna microstoma
The Pacific barreleye fish (''Macropinna'') is a genus of ray-finned fish belonging to Opisthoproctidae, the barreleye family. It contains one species, ''M. microstoma''. It is recognized for a highly unusual transparent, fluid-filled shield on ...
'', has a transparent protective dome over the top of its head, somewhat like the dome over an airplane cockpit, through which the lenses of its eyes can be seen. The dome is tough and flexible, and presumably protects the eyes from the nematocyst
A cnidocyte (also known as a cnidoblast) is a type of cell containing a large secretory organelle called a ''cnidocyst'', that can deliver a sting to other organisms as a way to capture prey and defend against predators. A cnidocyte explosively ...
s (stinging cells) of the siphonophore
Siphonophorae (from Ancient Greek σίφων (siphōn), meaning "tube" and -φόρος (-phóros), meaning "bearing") is an order within Hydrozoa, a class of marine organisms within the phylum Cnidaria. According to the World Register of Marine ...
s from which it is believed the barreleye steals food.[
*]
Another barreleye species, the brownsnout spookfish
The brownsnout spookfish or brown-snout spookfish (''Dolichopteryx longipes'') is a species of barreleye in the family Opisthoproctidae. It and the glasshead barreleye fish are the only vertebrates known to employ a mirror, in addition to a le ...
, is the only vertebrate known to employ a mirror, as opposed to a lens, to focus an image in its eyes. It is unusual in that it utilises both refractive
In physics, refraction is the redirection of a wave as it passes from one medium to another. The redirection can be caused by the wave's change in speed or by a change in the medium. Refraction of light is the most commonly observed phenome ...
and reflective
Reflection is the change in direction of a wavefront at an interface between two different media so that the wavefront returns into the medium from which it originated. Common examples include the reflection of light, sound and water waves. The ...
optics to see. The main tubular eye contains a lateral ovoid swelling called a diverticulum
In medicine or biology, a diverticulum is an outpouching of a hollow (or a fluid-filled) structure in the body. Depending upon which layers of the structure are involved, diverticula are described as being either true or false.
In medicine, t ...
, largely separated from the eye by a septum
In biology, a septum (Latin language, Latin for ''something that encloses''; septa) is a wall, dividing a Body cavity, cavity or structure into smaller ones. A cavity or structure divided in this way may be referred to as septate.
Examples
Hum ...
. The retina lines most of the interior of the eye, and there are two cornea
The cornea is the transparency (optics), transparent front part of the eyeball which covers the Iris (anatomy), iris, pupil, and Anterior chamber of eyeball, anterior chamber. Along with the anterior chamber and Lens (anatomy), lens, the cornea ...
l openings, one directed up and the other down, that allow light into the main eye and the diverticulum respectively. The main eye employs a lens
A lens is a transmissive optical device that focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements'') ...
to focus its image, as in other fishes. However, inside the diverticulum the light is reflected and focused onto the retina by a curved composite mirror derived from the retinal tapetum, composed of many layers of small reflective plates possibly made of guanine
Guanine () (symbol G or Gua) is one of the four main nucleotide bases found in the nucleic acids DNA and RNA, the others being adenine, cytosine, and thymine ( uracil in RNA). In DNA, guanine is paired with cytosine. The guanine nucleoside ...
crystal
A crystal or crystalline solid is a solid material whose constituents (such as atoms, molecules, or ions) are arranged in a highly ordered microscopic structure, forming a crystal lattice that extends in all directions. In addition, macros ...
s. The split structure of the brownsnout spookfish eye allows the fish to see both up and down at the same time. In addition, the mirror system is superior to a lens in gathering light. It is likely that the main eye serves to detect objects silhouetted against the sunlight, while the diverticulum serves to detect bioluminescent
Bioluminescence is the emission of light during a chemiluminescence reaction by living organisms. Bioluminescence occurs in multifarious organisms ranging from marine vertebrates and invertebrates, as well as in some fungi, microorganisms inc ...
flashes from the sides and below.
Sharks
Shark eye
An eye is a sensory organ that allows an organism to perceive visual information. It detects light and converts it into electro-chemical impulses in neurons (neurones). It is part of an organism's visual system.
In higher organisms, the ey ...
s are similar to the eyes of other vertebrates
Vertebrates () are animals with a vertebral column (backbone or spine), and a cranium, or skull. The vertebral column surrounds and protects the spinal cord, while the cranium protects the brain.
The vertebrates make up the subphylum Vertebra ...
, including similar lenses
A lens is a transmissive optical device that focuses or disperses a light beam by means of refraction. A simple lens consists of a single piece of transparent material, while a compound lens consists of several simple lenses (''elements''), ...
, cornea
The cornea is the transparency (optics), transparent front part of the eyeball which covers the Iris (anatomy), iris, pupil, and Anterior chamber of eyeball, anterior chamber. Along with the anterior chamber and Lens (anatomy), lens, the cornea ...
s and retina
The retina (; or retinas) is the innermost, photosensitivity, light-sensitive layer of tissue (biology), tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some Mollusca, molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focus (optics), focused two-dimensional ...
s, though their eyesight is well adapted to the marine environment with the help of a tissue called tapetum lucidum
The ; ; : tapeta lucida) is a layer of tissue in the eye of many vertebrates and some other animals. Lying immediately behind the retina, it is a retroreflector. It Reflection (physics), reflects visible light back through the retina, increas ...
. This tissue is behind the retina
The retina (; or retinas) is the innermost, photosensitivity, light-sensitive layer of tissue (biology), tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some Mollusca, molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focus (optics), focused two-dimensional ...
and reflects light back to it, thereby increasing visibility in the dark waters. The effectiveness of the tissue varies, with some sharks having stronger nocturnal
Nocturnality is a ethology, behavior in some non-human animals characterized by being active during the night and sleeping during the day. The common adjective is "nocturnal", versus diurnality, diurnal meaning the opposite.
Nocturnal creatur ...
adaptations. Many sharks can contract and dilate their pupil
The pupil is a hole located in the center of the iris of the eye that allows light to strike the retina.Cassin, B. and Solomon, S. (1990) ''Dictionary of Eye Terminology''. Gainesville, Florida: Triad Publishing Company. It appears black becau ...
s, like humans, something no teleost fish
Teleostei (; Ancient Greek, Greek ''teleios'' "complete" + ''osteon'' "bone"), members of which are known as teleosts (), is, by far, the largest group of ray-finned fishes (class Actinopterygii), with 96% of all neontology, extant species of f ...
can do. Sharks have eyelids, but they do not blink because the surrounding water cleans their eyes. To protect their eyes some species have nictitating membrane
The nictitating membrane (from Latin '' nictare'', to blink) is a transparent or translucent third eyelid present in some animals that can be drawn across the eye from the medial canthus to protect and moisten it while maintaining vision. Most ...
s. This membrane covers the eyes while hunting and when the shark is being attacked. However, some species, including the great white shark
The great white shark (''Carcharodon carcharias''), also known as the white shark, white pointer, or simply great white, is a species of large Lamniformes, mackerel shark which can be found in the coastal surface waters of all the major ocea ...
(''Carcharodon carcharias''), do not have this membrane, but instead roll their eyes backwards to protect them when striking prey. The importance of sight in shark hunting behavior is debated. Some believe that electro- and chemoreception
A chemoreceptor, also known as chemosensor, is a specialized sensory receptor which transduces a chemical substance (endogenous or induced) to generate a biological signal. This signal may be in the form of an action potential, if the chemorecept ...
are more significant, while others point to the nictating membrane as evidence that sight is important. Presumably, the shark would not protect its eyes were they unimportant. The use of sight probably varies with species and water conditions. The shark's field of vision can swap between monocular
A monocular is a compact refracting telescope used to magnify images of distant objects, typically using an optical prism to ensure an erect image, instead of using relay lenses like most telescopic sights. The volume and weight of a monocula ...
and stereoscopic
Stereoscopy, also called stereoscopics or stereo imaging, is a technique for creating or enhancing the illusion of depth in an image by means of stereopsis for binocular vision. The word ''stereoscopy'' derives . Any stereoscopic image is ...
at any time. A micro-spectrophotometry Microspectrophotometry is the measure of the spectra of microscopic samples using different wavelengths of electromagnetic radiation (e.g. ultraviolet, visible and near infrared, etc.) It is accomplished with ''microspectrophotometers'', ''cytospect ...
study of 17 species of shark found 10 had only rod photoreceptors and no cone cells in their retina
The retina (; or retinas) is the innermost, photosensitivity, light-sensitive layer of tissue (biology), tissue of the eye of most vertebrates and some Mollusca, molluscs. The optics of the eye create a focus (optics), focused two-dimensional ...
s giving them good night vision while making them colourblind. The remaining seven species had in addition to rods a single type of cone photoreceptor sensitive to green and, seeing only in shades of grey and green, are believed to be effectively colourblind. The study indicates that an object's contrast against the background, rather than colour, may be more important for object detection.
Other examples
Small fish often school
A school is the educational institution (and, in the case of in-person learning, the Educational architecture, building) designed to provide learning environments for the teaching of students, usually under the direction of teachers. Most co ...
together for safety. This can have visual advantages, both by visually confusing predator fish
Predatory fish are hypercarnivorous fish that actively prey upon other fish or aquatic animals, with examples including shark, billfish, barracuda, alligator gar, tuna, dolphinfish, walleye, perch and salmon. Some omnivorous fish, such as t ...
es, and by providing many eyes for the school regarded as a body. The "predator confusion effect" is based on the idea that it becomes difficult for predators to pick out individual prey from groups because the many moving targets create a sensory overload of the predator's visual channel. "Shoaling fish are the same size and silvery, so it is difficult for a visually oriented predator to pick an individual out of a mass of twisting, flashing fish and then have enough time to grab its prey before it disappears into the shoal." The "many eyes effect" is based on the idea that as the size of the group increases, the task of scanning the environment for predators can be spread out over many individuals, a mass collaboration
Mass collaboration is a form of collective action that occurs when large numbers of people work independently on a single project, often modular in its nature. Such projects typically take place on the internet using social software and computer-s ...
presumably providing a higher level of vigilance.
Fish are normally cold-blooded, with body temperatures the same as the surrounding water. However, some oceanic predatory fish
Predatory fish are hypercarnivorous fish that actively prey upon other fish or aquatic animals, with examples including shark, billfish, barracuda, alligator gar, tuna, dolphinfish, walleye, perch and salmon. Some omnivorous fish, such as t ...
, such as swordfish
The swordfish (''Xiphias gladius''), also known as the broadbill in some countries, are large, highly migratory predatory fish characterized by a long, flat, pointed bill. They are the sole member of the Family (biology), family Xiphiidae. They ...
and some shark and tuna
A tuna (: tunas or tuna) is a saltwater fish that belongs to the tribe Thunnini, a subgrouping of the Scombridae ( mackerel) family. The Thunnini comprise 15 species across five genera, the sizes of which vary greatly, ranging from the bul ...
species, can warm parts of their body when they hunt for prey in deep and cold water. The highly visual swordfish uses a heating system involving its muscles which raises the temperature in its eyes and brain by up to 15 °C. The warming of the retina improves the rate at which the eyes respond to changes in rapid motion made by its prey by as much as ten times.
Some fish have eyeshine
The ; ; : tapeta lucida) is a layer of tissue in the eye of many vertebrates and some other animals. Lying immediately behind the retina, it is a retroreflector. It Reflection (physics), reflects visible light back through the retina, increas ...
. Eyeshine is the result of a light-gathering layer in the eyes called the tapetum lucidum
The ; ; : tapeta lucida) is a layer of tissue in the eye of many vertebrates and some other animals. Lying immediately behind the retina, it is a retroreflector. It Reflection (physics), reflects visible light back through the retina, increas ...
, which reflects white light. It does not occur in humans, but can be seen in other species, such as deer in a headlight. Eyeshine allows fish to see well in low-light conditions as well as in turbid (stained or rough, breaking) waters, giving them an advantage over their prey. This enhanced vision allows fish to populate the deeper regions in the ocean or a lake. In particular, freshwater walleye
The walleye (''Sander vitreus'', Synonym (taxonomy), synonym ''Stizostedion vitreum''), also called the walleyed pike, yellow pike, yellow pikeperch or yellow pickerel, is a freshwater perciform fish native to most of Canada and to the Northern ...
are so named because their eyeshine.
Many species of Loricariidae
Loricariidae is the largest family (biology), family of catfish (order Siluriformes), with over 90 genus, genera and just over 680 species. Loricariids originate from freshwater habitats of Costa Rica, Panama, and tropical and subtropical South A ...
, a family of catfish
Catfish (or catfishes; order (biology), order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Catfish are common name, named for their prominent barbel (anatomy), barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, though not ...
, have a modified iris
Iris most often refers to:
*Iris (anatomy), part of the eye
* Iris (color), an ambiguous color term
*Iris (mythology), a Greek goddess
* ''Iris'' (plant), a genus of flowering plants
* Iris (given name), a feminine given name, and a list of peopl ...
called an ''omega iris''. The top part of the iris descends to form a loop which can expand and contract called an iris operculum; when light levels are high, the pupil reduces in diameter and the loop expands to cover the center of the pupil giving rise to a crescent
A crescent shape (, ) is a symbol or emblem used to represent the lunar phase (as it appears in the northern hemisphere) in the first quarter (the "sickle moon"), or by extension a symbol representing the Moon itself.
In Hindu iconography, Hind ...
shaped light transmitting portion. This feature gets its name from its similarity to an upside-down Greek letter
The Greek alphabet has been used to write the Greek language since the late 9th or early 8th century BC. It was derived from the earlier Phoenician alphabet, and is the earliest known alphabetic script to systematically write vowels as wel ...
omega
Omega (, ; uppercase Ω, lowercase ω; Ancient Greek ὦ, later ὦ μέγα, Modern Greek ωμέγα) is the twenty-fourth and last letter in the Greek alphabet. In the Greek numerals, Greek numeric system/isopsephy (gematria), it has a value ...
(Ω). The origins of this structure are unknown, but it has been suggested that breaking up the outline of the highly visible eye aids camouflage
Camouflage is the use of any combination of materials, coloration, or illumination for concealment, either by making animals or objects hard to see, or by disguising them as something else. Examples include the leopard's spotted coat, the b ...
in what are often highly mottled animals.
Distance sensory systems
Visual system
The visual system is the physiological basis of visual perception (the ability to perception, detect and process light). The system detects, phototransduction, transduces and interprets information concerning light within the visible range to ...
s are distance sensory systems which provide fish with data about location or objects at a distance without a need for the fish to directly touch them. Such distance sensing systems are important, because they allow communication with other fish, and provide information about the location of food and predators, and about avoiding obstacles or maintaining position in fish schools. For example, some schooling species have "schooling marks" on their sides, such as visually prominent stripes which provide reference marks and help adjacent fish judge their relative positions. But the visual system is not the only one that can perform such functions. Some schooling fish also have a lateral line
The lateral line, also called the lateral line organ (LLO), is a system of sensory organs found in fish, used to detect movement, vibration, and pressure gradients in the surrounding water. The sensory ability is achieved via modified epithelia ...
running the length of their bodies. This lateral line enables the fish to sense changes in water pressure and turbulence adjacent to its body. Using this information, schooling fish can adjust their distance from adjacent fish if they come too close or stray too far.
The visual system in fish is augmented by other sensing systems with comparable or complementary functions. Some fish are blind, and must rely entirely on alternate sensing systems. Other senses which can also provide data about location or distant objects include hearing
Hearing, or auditory perception, is the ability to perceive sounds through an organ, such as an ear, by detecting vibrations as periodic changes in the pressure of a surrounding medium. The academic field concerned with hearing is auditory sci ...
and echolocation, electroreception
Electroreception and electrogenesis are the closely related biological abilities to perceive electrical stimuli and to generate electric fields. Both are used to locate prey; stronger electric discharges are used in a few groups of fishes, such ...
, magnetoception
Magnetoreception is a sense which allows an organism to detect the Earth's magnetic field. Animals with this sense include some arthropods, molluscs, and vertebrates (fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals). The sense is mainly used ...
and chemoreception
A chemoreceptor, also known as chemosensor, is a specialized sensory receptor which transduces a chemical substance (endogenous or induced) to generate a biological signal. This signal may be in the form of an action potential, if the chemorecept ...
( smell and taste
The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste. Taste is the perception stimulated when a substance in the mouth biochemistry, reacts chemically with taste receptor cells l ...
). For example, catfish
Catfish (or catfishes; order (biology), order Siluriformes or Nematognathi) are a diverse group of ray-finned fish. Catfish are common name, named for their prominent barbel (anatomy), barbels, which resemble a cat's whiskers, though not ...
have chemoreceptors across their entire bodies, which means they "taste" anything they touch and "smell" any chemicals in the water. "In catfish, gustation
The gustatory system or sense of taste is the sensory system that is partially responsible for the perception of taste. Taste is the perception stimulated when a substance in the mouth reacts chemically with taste receptor cells located on tas ...
plays a primary role in the orientation and location of food".
Cartilaginous fish
Chondrichthyes (; ) is a class of jawed fish that contains the cartilaginous fish or chondrichthyans, which all have skeletons primarily composed of cartilage. They can be contrasted with the Osteichthyes or ''bony fish'', which have skeleto ...
(sharks, stingrays and chimaeras) use magnetoception. They possess special electroreceptors
Electroreception and electrogenesis are the closely related biological abilities to perceive electrical stimuli and to generate electric fields. Both are used to locate prey; stronger electric discharges are used in a few groups of fishes, such ...
called the ''ampullae of Lorenzini
Ampullae of Lorenzini (: ''ampulla'') are electroreceptors, sense organs able to detect electric fields. They form a network of mucus-filled pores in the skin of Chondrichthyes, cartilaginous fish (sharks, Ray (fish), rays, and chimaeras) and of ...
'' which detect a slight variation in electric potential. These receptors, located along the mouth and nose of the fish, operate according to the principle that a time-varying magnetic field moving through a conductor induces an electric potential across the ends of the conductor. The ampullae may also allow the fish to detect changes in water temperature. As in birds, magnetoception may provide information which help the fish map migration routes.
See also
* Arthropod eye
Eye#Apposition eyes, Apposition eyes are the most common form of eye, and are presumably the ancestral form of compound eye. They are found in all arthropod groups, although they may have evolved more than once within this phylum.
Some annelid ...
* Matthiessen's ratio
* Mollusc eye
The molluscs have the widest variety of eye morphologies of any phylum, and a large degree of variation in their function. Cephalopods such as octopus, squid, and cuttlefish have eyes as complex as those of vertebrates, while scallops have up to ...
* Parietal eye
A parietal eye (third eye, pineal eye) is a part of the epithalamus in some vertebrates. The eye is at the top of the head; is photoreceptive; and is associated with the pineal gland, which regulates circadian rhythmicity and hormone production ...
* Simple eye in invertebrates
A simple eye or ocellus (sometimes called a pigment pit) is a form of eye or an optical arrangement which has a single lens without the sort of elaborate retina that occurs in most vertebrates. These eyes are called "simple" to distinguish the ...
* Visual system
The visual system is the physiological basis of visual perception (the ability to perception, detect and process light). The system detects, phototransduction, transduces and interprets information concerning light within the visible range to ...
Notes
References
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*
*
Further reading
*
* Douglas, R. H. & Djamgoz, M. (eds) (1990) ''The Visual System of Fish''. Chapman and Hall, 526 pp.
*
* Land, Michael F and Nilsson, Dan-Eric (2012
''Animal Eyes''
Oxford University Press. .
*
**
*
* Berlinski, David (2002
Has Darwin Met His Match?
Page 34, The Vexing Eye (Letter). ''Commentary'', 1 December 2002.
*
*
– video on Nilsson-Pelger model (scroll down)
Bibliography
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External links
Compare Visual System of Fish to Human
nbsp;– ppt
Can Fish See Water?
AboutFishTank
Axolotl Pet
{{diversity of fish
Fishes
A fish (: fish or fishes) is an aquatic, anamniotic, gill-bearing vertebrate animal with swimming fins and a hard skull, but lacking limbs with digits. Fish can be grouped into the more basal jawless fish and the more common jawed ...
Fish anatomy
Fish nervous system