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Cat Senses
Cat senses are adaptations that allow cats to be highly efficient predators. Cats are good at detecting movement in low light, have an acute sense of hearing and smell, and their sense of touch is enhanced by long whiskers that protrude from their heads and bodies. These senses evolved to allow cats to hunt effectively at dawn and dusk. Sight Cats have a ''tapetum lucidum'', which is a reflective layer behind the retina that sends light that passes through the retina back into the eye. While this improves the ability to see in darkness and enables cats to see using roughly one-sixth the amount of light that humans need, it appears to reduce net visual acuity, thus detracting when light is abundant. A cat's visual acuity is anywhere from 20/100 to 20/200, which means a cat has to be at 6 metres to see what an average human can see at 20 or 30 metres. Cats seem to be nearsighted, which means they cannot see far objects as well. The ability to see close objects would be well-su ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Dichromat
Dichromacy (from Greek ''di'', meaning "two" and ''chromo'', meaning "color") is the state of having two types of functioning photoreceptors, called cone cells, in the eyes. Organisms with dichromacy are called dichromats. Dichromats require only two primary colors to be able to represent their visible gamut. By comparison, trichromats need three primary colors, and tetrachromats need four. Likewise, every color in a dichromat's gamut can be evoked with monochromatic light. By comparison, every color in a trichromat's gamut can be evoked with a combination of monochromatic light and white light. Dichromacy in humans is a color vision deficiency in which one of the three cone cells is absent or not functioning and color is thereby reduced to two dimensions."Guidelines: Colour Blindness." Tiresias.org. Retrie ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Flehmen Response
The flehmen response (; from German ''flehmen'', to bare the upper teeth, and Upper Saxon German ''flemmen'', to look spiteful), also called the flehmen position, flehmen reaction, flehmen grimace, flehming, or flehmening, is a behavior in which an animal curls back its upper lip exposing its front teeth, inhales with the nostrils usually closed, and then often holds this position for several seconds. It may be performed over a sight or substance of particular interest to the animal, or may be performed with the neck stretched and the head held high in the air. Flehmen is performed by a wide range of mammals, including ungulates and felids. The behavior facilitates the transfer of pheromones and other scents into the vomeronasal organ (VNO, or Jacobson's organ) located above the roof of the mouth via a duct which exits just behind the front teeth of the animal. Etymology The word originates from the German verb ''flehmen'', to bare the upper teeth. It comes from the Upper Saxo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Vomeronasal Organ
The vomeronasal organ (VNO), or Jacobson's organ, is the paired auxiliary olfactory (smell) sense organ located in the soft tissue of the nasal septum, in the nasal cavity just above the roof of the mouth (the hard palate) in various tetrapods. The name is derived from the fact that it lies adjacent to the unpaired vomer bone (from Latin 'plowshare', for its shape) in the nasal septum. It is present and functional in all snakes and lizards, and in many mammals, including cats, dogs, cattle, pigs, and some primates. Some humans may have physical remnants of a VNO, but it is vestigial and non-functional. The VNO contains the cell bodies of sensory neurons which have receptors that detect specific non-volatile (liquid) organic compounds which are conveyed to them from the environment. These compounds emanate from prey, predators, and the compounds called sex pheromones from potential mates. Activation of the VNO triggers an appropriate behavioral response to the presence of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Olfactory Epithelium
The olfactory epithelium is a specialized epithelial tissue inside the nasal cavity that is involved in smell. In humans, it measures 9 cm2 and lies on the roof of the nasal cavity about 7 cm above and behind the nostrils. The olfactory epithelium is the part of the olfactory system directly responsible for detecting odors. Structure Olfactory epithelium consists of four distinct cell types: * Olfactory sensory neurons * Supporting cells * Basal cells * Brush cells Olfactory sensory neurons The olfactory receptor neurons are sensory neurons of the olfactory epithelium. They are bipolar neurons and their apical poles express odorant receptors on non-motile cilia at the ends of the dendritic knob, which extend out into the airspace to interact with odorants. Odorant receptors bind odorants in the airspace, which are made soluble by the serous secretions from olfactory glands located in the lamina propria of the mucosa.Ross, MH, ''Histology: A Text and Atlas'', 5th Ed ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Odd-eyed Cat
An odd-eyed cat is a cat with one blue eye and one eye either green, yellow, or brown. This is a feline form of complete heterochromia,Foster, Race and Smith, Marty, ( DVMs)Heterochromia, A-Z Health Library, Purina-One. Retrieved February 2007.Foster, Race and Smith, Marty ( DVMs), date=2008-09-26 , Peteducation.com. Retrieved February 2007. a condition that occurs in some other animals, including humans. There is also partial heterochromia, where there can be one blue eye and one eye that is partially blue and partially another color. The condition most commonly affects white cats, but may be found in a cat of any color, provided that it possesses the Cat coat genetics, white spotting gene. Norwegian Forest Cats, Furry Boots. Retrieved February 2007. Cause The odd-eyed coloring is caused when either the Cat_coat_genetics#White_s ...[...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pinna (anatomy)
The auricle or auricula is the visible part of the ear that is outside the head. It is also called the pinna (Latin for "wing" or "fin", plural pinnae), a term that is used more in zoology. Structure The diagram shows the shape and location of most of these components: * ''antihelix'' forms a 'Y' shape where the upper parts are: ** ''Superior crus'' (to the left of the ''fossa triangularis'' in the diagram) ** ''Inferior crus'' (to the right of the ''fossa triangularis'' in the diagram) * ''Antitragus'' is below the ''tragus'' * ''Aperture'' is the entrance to the ear canal * ''Auricular sulcus'' is the depression behind the ear next to the head * ''Concha'' is the hollow next to the ear canal * Conchal angle is the angle that the back of the ''concha'' makes with the side of the head * ''Crus'' of the helix is just above the ''tragus'' * ''Cymba conchae'' is the narrowest end of the ''concha'' * External auditory meatus is the ear canal * ''Fossa triangularis'' is the depres ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hertz
The hertz (symbol: Hz) is the unit of frequency in the International System of Units (SI), equivalent to one event (or cycle) per second. The hertz is an SI derived unit whose expression in terms of SI base units is s−1, meaning that one hertz is the reciprocal of one second. It is named after Heinrich Rudolf Hertz (1857–1894), the first person to provide conclusive proof of the existence of electromagnetic waves. Hertz are commonly expressed in multiples: kilohertz (kHz), megahertz (MHz), gigahertz (GHz), terahertz (THz). Some of the unit's most common uses are in the description of periodic waveforms and musical tones, particularly those used in radio- and audio-related applications. It is also used to describe the clock speeds at which computers and other electronics are driven. The units are sometimes also used as a representation of the energy of a photon, via the Planck relation ''E'' = ''hν'', where ''E'' is the photon's energy, ''ν'' is its freq ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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. All Anura(tailless amphibians), and some reptiles, birds, and sharks have full nictitating membranes; in many mammals, a small, vestigial portion of the nictitating membrane remains in the corner of the eye. Some mammals, such as cats, camels, polar bears, seals and aardvarks, have full nictitating membranes. Often called a third eyelid or haw, it may be referred to in scientific terminology as the ''plica semilunaris'', ''membrana nictitans'', or ''palpebra tertia''. Description The nictitating membrane is a transparent or translucent third eyelid present in some animals that can be drawn across the eye for protection and to moisten it while maintaining vision. The term comes from the Latin word '' nictare'', meaning "to blink". It is o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Ultraviolet
Ultraviolet (UV) is a form of electromagnetic radiation with wavelength from 10 nanometer, nm (with a corresponding frequency around 30 Hertz, PHz) to 400 nm (750 Hertz, THz), shorter than that of visible light, but longer than X-rays. UV radiation is present in sunlight, and constitutes about 10% of the total electromagnetic radiation output from the Sun. It is also produced by electric arcs and specialized lights, such as mercury-vapor lamps, tanning lamps, and black lights. Although long-wavelength ultraviolet is not considered an ionizing radiation because its photons lack the energy to ionization, ionize atoms, it can cause chemical reactions and causes many substances to glow or fluorescence, fluoresce. Consequently, the chemical and biological effects of UV are greater than simple heating effects, and many practical applications of UV radiation derive from its interactions with organic molecules. Short-wave ultraviolet light damages DNA and sterilizes surf ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Lens (anatomy)
The lens, or crystalline lens, is a transparent biconvex structure in the eye that, along with the cornea, helps to refract light to be focused on the retina. By changing shape, it functions to change the focal length of the eye so that it can focus on objects at various distances, thus allowing a sharp real image of the object of interest to be formed on the retina. This adjustment of the lens is known as '' accommodation'' (see also below). Accommodation is similar to the focusing of a photographic camera via movement of its lenses. The lens is flatter on its anterior side than on its posterior side. In humans, the refractive power of the lens in its natural environment is approximately 18 dioptres, roughly one-third of the eye's total power. Structure The lens is part of the anterior segment of the human eye. In front of the lens is the iris, which regulates the amount of light entering into the eye. The lens is suspended in place by the suspensory ligament of the lens ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Protanopia
Color blindness or color vision deficiency (CVD) is the decreased ability to see color or differences in color. It can impair tasks such as selecting ripe fruit, choosing clothing, and reading traffic lights. Color blindness may make some academic activities more difficult. However, issues are generally minor, and the colorblind automatically develop adaptations and coping mechanisms. People with total color blindness (achromatopsia) may also be uncomfortable in bright environments and have decreased visual acuity. The most common cause of color blindness is an inherited problem or variation in the functionality of one or more of the three classes of cone cells in the retina, which mediate color vision. The most common form is caused by a genetic disorder called congenital red–green color blindness. Males are more likely to be color blind than females, because the genes responsible for the most common forms of color blindness are on the X chromosome. Non-color-blind f ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
