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Carolina chickadee vision: the science and the numbers

Poecile carolinensis · order Passeriformes · Birds: all the numbers

Its sharpest vision resolves 4.97 cycles per degree, against 63.75 for people in this dataset.[6] Its eyes cover about 303° with 51° seen by both eyes.[13]

See it on your photoBack to How does the Carolina chickadee see?
  • 4.97cycles per degree (sharpness)Measured
  • 303°field of viewEstimated

The Carolina chickadee (Poecile carolinensis) is a bird in the order Passeriformes. Its eyes belong to the vision type UV songbird, parrot and hummingbird: four cone types including a true ultraviolet cone, coloured oil droplets and fast motion vision. Measured in this species: sharpness, field of view and night vision. Measured core: measured values on at least 3 of the 6 dials.

This is a simulation built from published eye measurements, not what the animal experiences.

Method: How we know what animals see (the See Like Animals vision engine) · Sources · Last updated . Every value below carries its evidence level and sources; nothing is typed by hand.

What the Carolina chickadee sees: colour receptors

Carolina chickadee colour receptor peaks, 300 to 700 nmCarolina chickadee: 4 receptor peaks at 371.5, 448, 503, 563 nm; you: 3 at 421.5, 532, 558.4 nm. ultraviolet300400500600700
Carolina chickadee: 371.5, 448, 503, 563 nmPeople: 421.5, 532, 558.4 nmWavelength in nanometres

What stands out

  • Its sharpest vision resolves 4.97 cycles per degree: the finest stripe pattern it can tell apart from grey.
  • Its eyes cover about 303° around the head, with 51° seen by both eyes at once.
  • Activity pattern: diurnal.

The six dials

Evidence levels: how the tiers work. "Measured" means a value measured in this species; "Estimated" values come from a close relative or an eye-size formula. The last column gives the values for people from the same catalogue.

Vision values for the Carolina chickadee (Poecile carolinensis), catalogue-v1
DialValueEvidenceSourcesPeople
ColourColour receptors
4 receptor classes: 371.5 nm (UVS), 448 nm (SWS (blue)), 503 nm (MWS (green)), 563 nm (LWS (long))
receptor set of nearest measured relative Cyanistes caeruleus (same family Paridae)
Estimated[1][2]Colour receptors: 3 receptor classes: 421.5 nm (VS/SWS (violet)), 532 nm (MWS (green)), 558.4 nm (LWS (long)) Measured (not re-verified)[2][3][4][5]
Ultraviolet
yes: at least one receptor peaks in the ultraviolet		Estimated
SharpnessAcuity
4.97 cycles per degree
median of 1 anatomical-ganglion rows (method priority rule)
Measured[6]Acuity: 63.75 cycles per degree Measured[7][8]
Field of viewBinocular overlap
51°
median of 1 rows (eyes-at-rest rows preferred)
Measured[9]Binocular overlap: 122.5° Measured[10][11]
Total field of view: 200° Measured (not re-verified)[12]
Blind area behind the head: 160° Derived[12]
Eye placement: frontal Derived[10][11]
Total field of view
303°
rule: total = 360 - blind area
Derived[13]
Sharp zones (foveas)Number of foveas
1
median of 1 relatives in genus Poecile: Poecile atricapillus
Estimated[14]Number of foveas: 1 Measured[15]
Fovea type: fovea Measured[15]
Fovea type
single central fovea (displaced dorso-temporally from retinal centre)		Estimated[14]
Night visionActivity pattern
diurnal
mode of 5 rows (of 5 rows): diurnal; not_nocturnal; photopic
Measured (not re-verified)[16][17][18][19][20]Activity pattern: diurnal Measured (not re-verified)[16][21][22][2][23][24][19][20]
Pupil shape: vertical Group default[25][26]
Reflective layer (tapetum): no Measured[27]
Rods vs cones: cone-dominated Derived[16][21][22][2][23][24][19][20]
Rods vs cones
cone-dominated
nocturnal -> rod-dominated; crepuscular / cathemeral / mixed -> mixed; diurnal -> cone-dominated
Derived[16][17][18][19][20]
Motion (flicker fusion)Flicker fusion frequency
91 Hz
median of 1 relatives in family Paridae: Cyanistes caeruleus
Estimated[28]Flicker fusion frequency: 60 Hz Measured[29][30]

Other senses

  • magnetoreception: NOT RENDERED (no agreed visual percept) (Group default)

All birds side by side: Birds: every measurement. Method: how we know what animals see.

Sources

  1. Lind et al. 2014
  2. Longcore 2023
  3. Kirwan
  4. Müller et al. 2009
  5. Thermal Activation and Photoactivation of Visual… 2004
  6. Caves et al. 2018
  7. Kirk et al. 2004
  8. Veilleux et al. 2014
  9. Tyrrell et al. 2017
  10. Heesy 2004
  11. Heffner et al. 1992
  12. Campbell & Green 1965
  13. Tyrrell et al. 2017
  14. Moore et al. 2017
  15. Kopania et al. 2025
  16. Anderson et al. 2017
  17. Light conditions and the evolution of…
  18. Wilman et al. 2014
  19. Schmitz et al. 2011
  20. Moura et al. 2024
  21. Borges et al. 2018
  22. Wilman et al. 2014
  23. Maor et al. 2017
  24. Jones et al. 2009
  25. Banks et al. 2015
  26. Cervino et al. 2021
  27. Guareschi et al. 2025
  28. Boström et al. 2016
  29. Healy et al. 2013
  30. Inger et al. 2014

Every value cites its sources (all sources). Values were extracted from these works and converted (units, medians, derived values); changes are ours, and the listed sources do not endorse this site. Data: catalogue-v1, built 2026-09-29. Accuracy notes: how accurate is this? Method: how we know.