Summary
The spectral sensitivity of 15 species of birds has been measured by recording transretinal voltages from opened eyecups. With suitable combinations of colored adapting lights, we find that a variety of passerines have four peaks of photopic sensitivity, with maxima at 370, 450, 480, and 570 nm. Additional sensitivity maxima at 510 nm are found in some species. The spectral sensitivity functions are not altered by bathing the retinas in 50 mM sodium aspartate, suggesting that they reflect the properties of cones and do not result from inhibitory interactions between retinal interneurons.
Comparison of the results with a general mathematical model that describes spectral sensitivity functions recorded extracellularly from populations of receptors in different states of adaptation (Goldsmith 1986) shows that the retinal spectral sensitivity functions are consistent with the presence of (at least) four types of cone, but indicate as well that many of the cones that are maximally sensitive in the blue and violet likely contain oil droplets that attenuate the deep violet and near uv.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Bowmaker JK (1977) The visual pigments, oil droplets and spectral sensitivity of the pigeon. Vision Res 17:1129–1138
Bowmaker JK, Knowles A (1977) The visual pigments and oil droplets of the chicken retina. Vision Res 17:755–764
Bowmaker JK, Martin GR (1985) Visual pigments and oil droplets of the penguin,Spheniscus humboldti. J Comp Physiol A 156:71–77
Boynton RM, Baron WS (1982) Field sensitivity of the ‘red’ mechanism derived from primate local electroretinogram. Vision Res 22:869–878
Boynton RM, Whitten DN (1972) Selective chromatic adaptation in primate photoreceptors. Vision Res 12:855–874
Chen D-M, Goldsmith TH (1984) Appearance of a Purkinje shift in the developing retina of the chick. J Exp Zool 229:265–271
Chen D-M, Collins JS, Goldsmith TH (1984) The ultraviolet receptor of bird retinas. Science 285:337–340
Dartnall HJA, Bowmaker JK, Mollon JD (1983) Human visual pigments: microspectrophotometric results from the eyes of seven persons. Proc R Soc Lond B 220:115–130
Delius JD, Emmerton JA (1979) Visual performance of pigeons. In: Granda AM, Maxwell JH (eds) Neural mechanisms of behavior in the pigeon. Plenum Press, New York, pp 51–69
Dowling JE, Ripps H (1972) Adaptation in skate photoreceptors. J Gen Physiol 60:698–719
Evers HU, Gouras P (1986) Three cone mechanisms in the primate electroretinogram: two with, one without off-center bipolar responses. Vision Res 26:245–254
Fager LY, Fager RS (1981) Chicken blue and chicken violet, short wavelength sensitive visual pigments. Vision Res 21:581–586
Goldsmith TH (1986) Interpreting trans-retinal recordings of spectral sensitivity. J Comp Physiol A 159:481–487
Goldsmith TH, Collins JS, Perlman DL (1981) A wavelength discrimination function for the hummingbirdArchilochus alexandri. J Comp Physiol 143:103–110
Goldsmith TH, Collins JS, Licht S (1984) The cone oil droplets of avian retinas. Vision Res 24:1661–1671
Govardovskii VI, Zueva LV (1977) Visual pigments of chicken and pigeon. Vision Res 17:537–543
Graf VA (1979) Four spectral mechanisms in the pigeon (Columba livia). In: Granda AM, Maxwell JH (eds) Neural mechanisms of behavior in the pigeon. Plenum Press, New York, pp 129–144
Graf V, Norren DV (1974) A blue sensitive mechanism in the pigeon retina: λmax 400 nm. Vision Res 14:1203–1209
Hanawa I, Takahashi K, Kawamoto N (1976) A correlation of embryogenesis of visual cells and early receptor potential in the developing retina. Exp Eye Res 23:587–594
Jacobs GH, Neitz J (1986) Spectral mechanisms and color vision in the tree shrew (Tupaia belangeri). Vision Res 26:291–298
Jacobs GH, Neitz J, Crognale M (1985) Spectral sensitivity of ground squirrel cones measured with ERG flicker photometry. J Comp Physiol A 156:503–509
Neitz J, Jacobs GH (1984) Electroretinogram measurements of cone spectral sensitivity in dichromatic monkeys. J Opt Soc Am A 1:1175–1180
Norren DV (1975) Two short wavelength sensitive cone systems in the pigeon, chicken and daw. Vision Res 15:1164–1166
Norren DV, Padmos P (1973) Human and macaque blue cones studied with electroretinography. Vision Res 13:1241–1254
Wald G, Brown PK, Smith PH (1955) Iodopsin. J Gen Physiol 38:623–681
Wessels RHA (1974) Tetrachromatic vision in the daw. Doct. Thesis, Rijksuniversiteit Utrecht
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Chen, D.M., Goldsmith, T.H. Four spectral classes of cone in the retinas of birds. J. Comp. Physiol. 159, 473–479 (1986). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00604167
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00604167