Ontogenetic changes in the visual acuity ofSepia officinalismeasured using the optomotor response
- 1 February 2005
- journal article
- Published by Canadian Science Publishing in Canadian Journal of Zoology
- Vol. 83 (2), 274-279
- https://doi.org/10.1139/z05-011
Abstract
For many organisms vision is of fundamental importance to many aspects of their lives. Here we present the first study to examine the effects of ontogeny and light intensity on the vision of a cephalopod. We measured the visual acuity of four size classes of Sepia officinalis L., 1758 (common cuttlefish) under four light intensities. We used an optomotor testing system in which we recorded the unconditioned whole-body movements exhibited by individuals when placed inside a rotating cylinder lined with vertical black and white stripes. By varying the width of these stripes to determine the minimum width associated with a positive response, we were able to estimate the visual acuity angle or minimum separable angle (MSA). We found a significant effect of both body size and light intensity; larger animals had greater visual acuity, while individuals of all size classes discriminated more detail at higher light intensities. The minimum recorded MSA for S. officinalis was 34' of arc (0.57°) for the largest animals (80 mm) at the highest light intensity used (15 µW·cm–2). Decreasing light intensity from 15 to 4.5 µW·cm–2affected animals of all sizes to approximately the same degree, reducing their visual acuity by approximately 55%.Keywords
This publication has 20 references indexed in Scilit:
- The pupillary response of cephalopodsJournal Of Experimental Biology, 2005
- Role of vision in behavior, visual field, and visual acuity of cuttlefish Sepia esculentaFisheries Science, 2000
- Age-related changes in the visual acuity of larvae of New Zealand snapper,Pagrus auratusJournal of the Marine Biological Association of the United Kingdom, 1994
- The development of visual acuity in larval plaice (Pleuronectes platessa L.) and turbot (Scophthalmusmaximus L.)Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology, 1984
- Effect of Fish Size on the Reactive Distance of Bluegill (Lepomis macrochirus) SunfishCanadian Journal of Fisheries and Aquatic Sciences, 1983
- Pigment Migration and Adaptation in the Eye of the Squid, Loligo pealei The Journal of general physiology, 1974
- Ontogeny of visual acuity in two species of deermice (Peromyscus)Animal Behaviour, 1973
- LIGHT‐AND DARK‐ADAPTATION IN THE EYES OF SOME CEPHALOPODSJournal of Zoology, 1963
- Factors Affecting Reactions To Mysis By Newly Hatched SepiaBehaviour, 1958
- Accuracy and Sensitivity of the Human EyeNature, 1952