why would they need to and not us?!
2006-09-07 10:14:17 · 22 answers · asked by Anonymous in Science & Mathematics ➔ Zoology
some amazing answers here, thanks!
2006-09-09 08:39:23 · update #1
Wolves can see into the near infra-red spectrum, just past the longest wavelength we can see. They detect this with their eyes, so it is clearly "seeing" unlike the the heat detection of pit-vipers etc, which use much longer infra-red wavelengths.
I don't know if other dogs have this ability; I would expect so since they are very closely related to wolves.
As to why they need to and not us, all senses seem to have a trade-off. We don't have the tiny movement sensitivity of many mammals, nor their night vision. On the other hand, no other mammal, and few other animals, can differentiate the range of colours we can, and most can't resolve still objects like us.
You can't be best at everything, basically!
2006-09-09 08:58:35 · answer #1 · answered by Paul FB 3 · 1⤊ 0⤋
It depends on how you determine whether or not a creature is 'seeing' infrared, or merely 'detecting' it.
We have the ability to detect infrared to some extent, through our sense of touch and ability to discriminate hot and cold. We can feel when we are facing towards the sun even if our eyes are closed. However I don't think anyone would count this as 'sight'.
The infrared sense of the pit vipers and some of the pythons (the only snake groups that have that detailed infrared sense) is a bit more of a grey area. They do not sense the infrared with their eyes, but instead via pits on their cheeks (pit vipers) or lining the edge of their lips (pythons). These heat sensitive pits have a much finer sense of heat and cold that the rest of the snake, and can help them detect warm-blooded prey in the dark. However it's not really sight as such.
There are also insects that can detect infrared. There are a few species of metallic wood-boring beetle (Buprestidae) that are able to detect trees that have been recently burned in forest fires, and move towards those trees to lay their eggs. Sometimes known as fire beetles, they have specialized infrared sensors that allow them to see the warmer trees. Unfortunately, they sometimes mistake warm humans (especially fire fighters) for burned trees, and they do have a rather nasty bite as they attempt to burrow into what they think is nice roasted tree.
2006-09-07 10:29:26 · answer #2 · answered by Anonymous · 2⤊ 0⤋
The snakes...certain snakes called pit vipers are able to detect infrared light more accurately than we can, though only within a short range.A pit viper can detect nearby objects by the near-infrared heat reflected or emitted from them. Our ability to actually see infrared heat in detail is blocked by several major problems. Because infrared light is less energetic than visible light, a human able to see near-infrared light clearly would need eyes about 5-10 times larger than normal. We also have body temperatures just below 100 degrees F., which is enough to blind us with heat radiation. It's like trying to take a picture when the camera itself emits light inside and out, ruining the film.
To prevent such heat blindness, an infravision-using creature would need some sort of insulation around its eyeballs to keep the body's heat out of them, and some kind of refrigerant to keep the eyeballs cool so they become sensitive to outside light.
2006-09-08 11:58:34 · answer #3 · answered by theitalianalien 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Fish can see infra red so when you change channels using the remote control the fish are entertained with their own version of a firework display
2006-09-09 03:36:08 · answer #4 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Goldfish can see in infra-red as well as ultra violet. This helps them navigate murky waters.
Sidewinder snakes also have infra-red sensors to detect the body heat of their prey.
The Predator in the movies also detects infra-red
2006-09-08 06:21:23 · answer #5 · answered by carl l 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
'Seeing' is with the eyes. No animal has infra-red sight that we know of.
Heat detection is pretty much universal to a greater or lesser degree.
Pit vipers (eg. rattlesnakes) have very good heat detection through pits near the snout. They use it to track warm blooded mammals in the dark, we don't have it because we compensate with our brain (we make infra-red cameras).
2006-09-08 16:28:08 · answer #6 · answered by Simon D 5 · 1⤊ 0⤋
snakes can build up a picture using a combination of infra red vision an heat detection
2006-09-07 10:17:22 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
Pit vipers - so named after the infrared receiver pits located below the nostrils. The pit vipers are most active (hunting) in darkness and prey mainly on rodents that are warm blooded - they can effectively see the heat trace of their prey against the cold background landscape. We are not nocturnal (and generally don't eat rodents) so do not need to see in total darkness.
2006-09-08 05:07:28 · answer #8 · answered by Mark R 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
It looks like it is snakes that see infra red. They are sensitive to the infra red light. You can find information about this on www.amazing-space.stsci or something like that.
2006-09-09 08:33:10 · answer #9 · answered by Pam W 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
The pit viper is known to have two infrared sensory pits on its head. There is controversy over the exact thermal sensitivity of this biological infrared detection system.
Some snakes hunt nocturnally
2006-09-09 03:58:25 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 1⤊ 0⤋