As the son of an ophthalmologist, naturally, I have always found eyes to be one of the most fascinating structures within the human body, only second to the brain in my opinion. Spending the long hours after school in his office I satisfied this curiosity through staring at various diagrams, assembling and deconstructing foam anatomical models, and probing my father with questions about all of his equipment.
Of course, I found this far more entertaining than working on monotonous homework and so I preoccupied most of my time wandering around alongside watching the TV in the break room.
Anyways, I bring all this up because I recently watched an amazing YouTube video that made me think about many of the eye’s intricacies I had never pondered…
As I sit here typing away, I can’t help but marvel at the incredible diversity of animal pupils. From the vertical slits of a house cat’s eyes to the rectangular pupils of a grazing goat, these shapes seem to be uniquely suited to the animal’s role in their ecosystem. It’s almost as if nature has custom-designed each animal’s eyes to help them navigate their particular niche in the world.
In her TED Talk, “The Science of Animal Pupils,” Emma Bryce explores this fascinating topic in depth. She explains how different pupil shapes can be used to gauge an animal’s size, speed, and even their prey. For example, a cat’s vertically elongated pupils allow them to judge distance more accurately, making them excellent hunters in low light conditions. On the other hand, the rectangular pupils of grazing animals like goats help them to maintain a wide field of vision, allowing them to spot predators more easily while munching on grass.
But what about animals with crescent- or heart-shaped pupils? Bryce explains that these unusual shapes are often found in animals that are active during dawn or dusk, such as geckos or gazelles. The crescent shape helps to reduce glare from the sun and enhance contrast, making it easier to see in low light. And the heart-shaped pupils of cuttlefish are thought to help them judge the distance of their prey more accurately.
It’s amazing to think about how these different pupil shapes have evolved over time, each one perfectly adapted to the needs of its particular species. And it’s not just in the animal kingdom where we see this kind of adaptation and diversity. In our own lives, we each have our own unique set of skills, talents, and personality traits that help us thrive in different environments.
It’s incredible to consider how these various pupil shapes have changed over time, each one perfectly suited to the requirements of its respective species. And we observe this kind of diversity and adaptation throughout all of creation, not just the animal kingdom. Each of us has a special set of abilities, talents, and personality traits that enable us to succeed in various settings.
Just as the pupils of the cat aid it in being an excellent hunter and the pupils of the goat support it in keeping an eye out for danger, we all have our own strengths that make us uniquely suited for various roles in our lives. While some of us naturally excel in leadership roles, others do well in supporting roles. Similarly, some are better at carrying out new ideas than others are at coming up with them. Consider the diversity, randomness, and beauty of each eye you see, in fact, even between identical twins no two eyes are alike.
Take a moment to appreciate the incredible variety of life on this planet the next time you gaze into an animal’s eyes that have a peculiar pupil shape. Do not forget that we all have a specific place in the world, just as these animals have found a place in their ecosystem.
If you’re interested:
Hey Josh,
I love this post so much because it is something I have always noticed but never specifically looked into. I have thought about this when looking at the different pets I have. I have a crested gecko, 2 leopard geckos, 2 dogs, and 2 cats, and they all have such beautiful eyes that look so different. The same can honestly be said about humans too. Your post given me the most information I have ever absorbed on this topic. Thank you so much for sharing!
Josh,
This was one of the most unique blog posts I have read all year. I loved how you included photos and the link to the video you watched. I took a biology class a few semesters back and we talked about the influences of aging on the human eye. Although that class was interesting, I wish we had talked about the impact of different pupil shapes and how they allow each animal to play a certain role in their environment. Your blog post was incredibly informative and I hope to learn more about animal eyes in the near future. Thank you so much for sharing!
Hi Josh,
This was a really interesting post. Funny enough, we only recently learned about the science behind the eye and vision in my PHYS 251 class, where we explored focal length and how physics plays a role in terms of vision and vision impairments. While seemingly straightforward, it is crazy how much power it holds, with vision being arguably the most beautiful sense one can experience. With the possibility of pursuing ophthalmology as a future career, reading about the intricacies of the eye was something that was a real treat for me!
Hi Josh,
I learned a lot of new things about eyes and pupils! It’s really interesting to see the different shapes and the purpose behind their unique morphology. I wanted to tie in my own research on Alzheimer’s Disease (AD) to this and share that recently it was found that AD can be diagnosed by looking at a patient’s eyes–amazing to see how such a small organ can tell us so much!