Worksheet: Night eyes
Name:
1. Which animal sees this?
Each picture shows the same red tulips through one animal's eyes. Write the animal under each picture: Tawny owl, Cat.
2. Circle the difference
Left: the tulips as you see them. Right: as the tawny owl sees them. Circle three things that changed.
3. Talk and write
Why can no animal see in a room that is completely dark?
Answer key (for the teacher)
1. Picture A: Tawny owl; Picture B: Cat.
2. Any three changes the pupils can point to on the two pictures.
3. Seeing needs light that bounces off things into the eye. With no light at all, nothing reaches any eye, so no animal can see.
Facts to share
Each fact comes from published measurements in our catalogue; the id names the values it uses.
- A tawny owl sees with 4 colour types; you have 3. (Tawny owl; fact strix-aluco.col.count; values Strix aluco#colour.n, Homo sapiens#colour.n)
- A sign you can read from 10 m, a tawny owl has to get to about 1.5 m to see as clearly. (Tawny owl; fact strix-aluco.acu.sign; values Strix aluco#acuity.cpd, Homo sapiens#acuity.cpd)
- The zone where both its eyes see the same thing is about a third as wide as yours. (Tawny owl; fact strix-aluco.fld.overlap; values Strix aluco#field.binocular, Homo sapiens#field.binocular)
- A cat sees with 2 colour types; you have 3. (Cat; fact felis-catus.col.count; values Felis catus#colour.n, Homo sapiens#colour.n)
- A sign you can read from 10 m, a cat has to get to about 1.4 m to see as clearly. (Cat; fact felis-catus.acu.sign; values Felis catus#acuity.cpd, Homo sapiens#acuity.cpd)
- Fast things look about 1.3 times slower to a cat. (Cat; fact felis-catus.cff.slow; values Felis catus#temporal.cff, Homo sapiens#temporal.cff)
A simulation built from published eye measurements, not what the animal experiences. seelikeanimals.com/classroom/lessons/night-eyes/