Surely you have ever come across an animal at night and when a little of the moonlight, or a lighthouse or flashlight, has reached it you have seen that its eyes shone a lot. This is what makes some animals can have nightlife, because thanks to that they can see perfectly when for others, on the other hand, there is too little light to get a glimpse of something. But exactly how can nocturnal animals see in the dark? What is that glow? If you ask yourself these questions and you are curious, continue reading this article in which we give you all the answers.
How some animals can see in the dark
Nocturnal animals can see in the dark because they have a reflective surface called the tapetum lucidum, which is a layer of tissue located on the retina, although in some species it is behind it. This tissue developed to see well in the dark is what allows certain animals to do night or twilight life, since in some species it is more developed than in others, while in others, diurnal animals, it is practically non-existent or does not exist.
Thanks to this part of the eyes, these living beings can see shapes and colors that diurnal animals, like us, cannot see in dark or very low light conditions. In fact, diurnal animals can become a little oriented in the dark after taking a while in it, since the eyes get used to it a little, but only when a minimum of light arrives, for example in the twilight time and in the middle of the night if the moonlight is bright enough.
Thus, many animal species have enough for the moon to shine a little to be able to see perfectly, others need to wait for twilight, when the sun rises or sets, to be able to see well. But, in addition, nocturnal animals can orient themselves in the dark not only thanks to their more developed sight for it, but also because they have an excellent sense of smell and hearing. Also, some species not only have these senses much more developed, but also have adaptations such as echolocation and thermoreceptors to orient themselves in space and find food. Echolocation allows orientation thanks to vibrations and thermoregulation thanks to sensitivity to different temperatures.
Nocturnal animals take advantage of the hours of daylight to regain strength, sleeping and resting, but also their eyesight is not so good in this part of the day, since the light is excessive for them. On the other hand, animals that are crepuscular or that have both nocturnal and diurnal habits, can adapt to wandering during the day and moving or looking for food, especially during the mating season.
Why the eyes of nocturnal animal’s shine
The eyes of some animals, totally nocturnal or with both nocturnal and diurnal activity, shine precisely because of the part of the eye that we have commented that allows them to see better in the dark. The tapetum lucidum is the part of the eye that allows nocturnal animals to see well at night and in doing so produces an intense glow in the eyes.
The reason is because this tissue contains guanine and more rods, the light-sensitive eye cells, and both allow this layer of the eye to collect more light from the environment and reflect it, illuminating the sight of these animals.
List of nocturnal and semi-nocturnal animals
Now that you know how nocturnal animals can see at night and other details, here’s a list of nocturnal and partially nocturnal or crepuscular animals:
Nocturnal animals
- Bat
- Aye-aye
- Loris
- Malay tarsier
- Galago de Rondo
- Owl
- Owl
- Pygmy owl
- Tawny owl
- Skunk or skunk
- Red fox
- Ring-tailed lemur
- Boa of Tumbes
- Firefly
- Clouded leopard
- Sand cat
- Hedgehog
- Opossum
- Armadillo
- Genet
- Hamster
Semi-nocturnal animals
This is known as the animals that can have activity both day and night, according to their needs at the time of year in which they are. For example, wolves are mainly nocturnal, but in the winter months they can be seen moving and hunting during some hours of the day. There are also crepuscular animals, that is, they have the greatest activity during twilight and take advantage of the lack of clarity when the sun begins to rise and when it begins to set. Here are some examples of these types of animals:
- Wolf
- Dog
- Cat
- Cheetah
- Raccoon
- Deer
- Red kangaroo
- Rat
- Koala
- Hippopotamus
- Snake
- Gecko
In addition to knowing the names, throughout the article you can find several images of nocturnal animals and even how their eyes shine to be able to see perfectly in the darkness of the night.
If you enjoyed learning how nocturnal animals can see in the dark, you may also be interested in learning about 8 animals that camouflage themselves to survive and how they do it.