FAQs About Lions

Yes they do. Eyes have two kinds of receptor cells, called rods and cones because of their structure. Rods are mainly responsible for black and white vision, and cones do the colour bit. Human eyes have a predominance of cones – we see colours very well, especially in the red spectrum of light, but consequently we have a problem with night vision no matter how many carrots we eat. Lions have fewer cones so see less colour but have great night vision especially since their eyes also have a membrane that concentrates weak light back to the retina and their pupils are able to enlarge to an extent much bigger than ours. Basically, what you are asking is a very good question. We humans have a perception of the world around us that is very different from other animals, and it is mainly visual. A dog, for example, perceives the world very differently as information about the environment accumulates from a great sense of smell, a great sense of hearing, and wonderful eyesight. Humans are equipped to see wonderful differences in shades of red, but we cannot hear the crack of a small branch 20 feet away nor can we gain a whiff of the presence of drugs in a suitcase. It made selective sense in our history to have good colour vision, and it made selective sense for a dog (who can also see some colour) to hear and smell at a level we cannot even begin to appreciate!