Myth: Felines and canines are colorblind
Although it was long believed that our furry companions had limited vision and only saw certain colors, it’s not the case. Cats and dogs have much better color eyesight than we thought. Both can see shades of blue and green. In fact, cats have way more light-sensing cells or rods in their eyes than humans do, and that’s why they can see better in low-light situations. Of course that doesn’t explain why they sometimes act that way they do.
Admit it. You’ve crashed into a wall making your way to the bathroom during the night. That won’t happen with a cat: According to ScienceABC, they have an extra “mirror” layer at the back of their eye behind their retina, which means that the incoming light has two chances to hit the rods. In the human eye, if it misses, the light is absorbed in a black layer behind the retina and is gone forever. Pups have less color-sensing cells in their eyes so their color vision may be only 1/7th as vibrant as ours. According to the American Kennel Club, scientists believe that a dog’s color vision is similar to that of a person who has red–green colorblindness. Check out Dog-Vision.com where you can pop in a photo and see what your pooch is seeing. Here are 17 more insights to explain your feline’s behavior.
Myth: Bees can only sting once
You typically do your best to avoid winged stingers. With good reason: Bumble bees and yellow jacket wasps have mostly smooth stingers and can attack repeatedly. And if there’s a European hornet that’s buzzing around your yard, stay away! According to an article in Forbes, they don’t even bother stinging you because they’re large enough to bite with their jaws—yikes. And then there are good old wood bees that burrow holes in your wood deck or home. Stick a finger in there and a female may sting you. But you’re safe if it’s a male wood bee. Poor guys don’t have stingers. Turns out the only bee with a single sting is the honey bee. Once they get you, it’s the big beehive in the sky for them. Learn about the intricate democracy that makes bees one of the 12 smartest animals in the world.
