Some may think that the eyes of birds are inferior or similar in range to those of humans, but this isn’t correct. Over the years, several studies by ornithologists have revealed that a bird’s vision is by far superior to that of a human.

As a matter of fact, while human eyes may fail to notice a lot of subtle details in an environment or thing, a bird’s eye is sure to detect even the minutest detail.

Humans and animals have different strengths when it comes to their senses. Birds are said to see things differently than humans. So how do pigeons see?

Pigeons see in a much clearer way than humans. They have eyes on the side of their head which allows them to see forwards and sideways. They have better visual accuracy, depth perception and can see more colors than humans. Their eyes are also more sensitive to light allowing them to navigate better at night

How do pigeons see?

Birds in general, are built with a powerful vision to help them survive in the wild. However, one bird specie, in particular, has better eyesight than most birds, the pigeon – someone once referred to these creatures as “two eyes with wings.”

A lot has been said about a pigeon’s impeccable vision, let’s find out how good it actually is:

Field of vision:

Pigeons have eyes on the side of their head. This gives the bird a field of vision of 135-degrees vertically and 340-degrees horizontally. What this means is that pigeons can see the things in front of them and to the side, they also have a wide visual field.

Humans, on the other hand, only have a field of vision of 135-degrees vertically and 180-degrees horizontally. We can see what is in front of us just as much as pigeons can, but our sideway view is quite bad when compared to what birds can see.

Visual acuity:

There are 200,000 photoreceptors per square millimeter of the human retina. Pigeons have that same number in the part of their eye that receives light from their frontal vision.

However, the part of their eyes that receives light from their powerful sideway vision has over 400,000 photoreceptors.

As objects move farther away from our central vision, we lose depth perception, visual acuity, and the ability to tell the difference between nearly identical colors. But this is not the case with pigeons.

These creatures can clearly see things even when they are farther away from their central vision – all thanks to their sharp lateral vision.

Colour vision:

The eyes of humans are trichromatic – able to perceive three independent channels of color, pigeons, on the other hand, are pentachromatic – able to perceive five independent channels of color.

As a result of this, pigeons can see ultraviolet lights – humans cannot perceive this type of light.

Using the rainbow as an example, humans can see the colors red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo, and violet. But pigeons can see more than that.

How do they navigate?

Pigeons are really amazing creatures. Take these birds hundreds of kilometers from their home and release them. You’d be surprised to know the birds will somehow find their way back home.

These creatures have impressive navigational abilities. There have been lots of researches to understand how pigeons navigate home from long distances.

One study explains that pigeons can find their way back home by relying on their internal compass, map mechanism, and position of the sun. Like a lot of other birds in the wild, pigeons use the position of the sun to know the right direction to fly.

Another study shows that pigeons can detect the earth’s magnetic field using the iron particles in their beaks, and rely on this for guidance.

A more recent study explains that pigeons may find their way home by relying on low-frequency infrasound.

According to this group of researchers, a pigeon in flight will keep listening to these sounds, until it recognizes the sound native to its home.

Can pigeons see at night?

Pigeons are diurnal birds and rarely move at night. And as daylight animals, their vision functions better during the day. But that’s not to say these birds are totally blind at night.

Pigeons do not have night vision like nocturnal birds, but their eyes are super sensitive to light. A pigeon only needs the light of the moon and city lights, and it can find its way at night.

Do pigeons recognize faces?

There are only a few birds with the ability to recognize faces and pigeons are one of them.

One research showed that pigeons can recognize the faces of those who feed them and those who try to hurt them. This ability is necessary for survival in the wild, as it helps the birds separate friend from foe.

Individuals who constantly feed these birds will discover that pigeons rarely fly away when they approach. This is because the birds have memorized the facial features of the said humans who feed them over time.

How do birds with eyes on the side of their head see?

Birds with eyes on the side of their head do not only see forward, they can also see sideways. In fact, their sideway vision is more of a blessing to them in the wild.

While a forward-facing eye is excellent for raptors, birds like pigeons and parrots have a greater need for eyes on the side of their head, as it lets them survey their surroundings.

The sideways facing eyes give vegetarian birds a panoramic vision; they are able to see the things behind them and detect predators coming at them from any direction – this helps to keep them alive in the wild.

Can birds see TV screens?

Birds can see tv screens and may even enjoy watching a few movies and cartoons with you.

Studies have shown that birds are naturally interested in color and sounds. And watching tv provides them with enough intriguing colors and sounds to keep them entertained.

If you own a bird pet, you can let it watch tv with you sometimes. Shows like cartoons and Animal planet will do just fine for them. Just make sure that they don’t watch scenes of large animals preying on smaller animals or birds, as it might get them agitated.

Conclusion

As we have seen in this article, the pigeon’s vision is far superior to that of humans and most animals on the planet. These creatures do not only have a wider visual field; they are also able to perceive ultraviolet lights and colors that are invisible to humans.

The navigational prowess of these birds is another wonderful ability they are born with. What’s there not to love about these incredible birds?

If you’re interested in pigeons you may also be interested in these articles: Why do pigeons fly in circles? How do pigeons feed their babies? How do pigeons sleep? Why do pigeons make noise? How do pigeons know where to deliver messages? Click the links to read more.