Did you know that chickens evolved from the dinosaurs?
Good stocksmanship means knowing a lot about your chicken, including the eyes. Chickens are fascinating birds, whether they are raised in large commercial factory farms or in backyard coops. Thanks to years of study into the phenomenon of the chicken, we now, for example, have a better sense of the way in which the chickens see the world.
Here are some interesting facts that you may not have heard of about chicken vision:-
- The chicken eyes make up about 10% of the entire chicken head mass!
- Because chickens have eyes on the side of their heads, they are able to see up 300-degrees around them. That means they have almost their entire surroundings covered in their line of vision.
- The chicken eyes are tetrachromatic. The eyes have four types of cones and these help them to see blue light, red light, green light and ultraviolet light. As a result, chickens are able to see more shades of colors than humans!
- The chicken eyes also have an extra double cone structure that helps them in tracking movement.
- The chicken eyes is highly sensitive. This enables them to see even the tiniest of light fluctuations that the human eyes cannot perceive. That is why chickens can find too much of it irritable. It is said that fluorescent lighting to chickens is like strobe lighting to humans.
- Chickens sense the absence of even the presence of lighting through the pineal gland that is located in their heads. This means that even a chicken that is completely blind can sense seasonal change or daylight.
- Chickens also have a third eye lid. This is known as the nictating membrane and the function of this is to slide horizontally over the eyelid in order to protect it from debris and dust.
- A chicken can use each of its eyes independently while performing different tasks simultaneously!
- Chickens also have a mono-vision. While the right eye is near sighted, the left eye is far sighted. This is because as they turn in the egg before they are hatched, the right eye is exposed to light coming in through the egg shell while the left eye isn’t because it is always facing the body.
- Lastly, chickens have a very poor night vision. They have evolved from the dinosaurs and didn’t spent thousands of years hiding in the dark!