Vision in echolocating bats - Fladdermus.net

Tab. 2. – Visual acuity expressed as degrees of arc in Microchiroptera obtained from previous studies.
Behavioural acuity values come from optomotor responses, and theoretical values are calculated from the
number of retinal ganglion cells. Acuity is the minimum separable angle, i.e. the best values for each species.
Asterisks indicate that the ambient light level was not measured (or acuity was measured theoretically). For
consistency, the values of visual acuity were sometimes converted from other units, used in the original paper.
Light Visual Method
Species (lux) acuity Author (behav/theor)
a) Vespertilionidae; gleaning insectivores
Macrotus californicus 0.002 3.6’ Bell & Fenton 1986 b
Antrozous pallidus 0.004 15’ Bell & Fenton 1986 b
b) Vespertilionidae; aerial-hawking and trawling insectivores
Eptesicus fuscus * 1° Bell & Fenton 1986 b
Eptesicus fuscus 40’-43’ Koay et al. 1998, Marks 1980 t
Myotis lucifugus * 3-6° Suthers 1966 b
Nyctophilus gouldi 50’ Pettigrew et al. 1988 t
c) Emballonuridae; aerial-hawking insectivores
Saccopteryx bilineata 29’ Pettigrew et al. 1988 t
Saccopteryx leptura * 42’ Suthers 1966 b
Taphozus georgianus 23’ Pettigrew et al. 1988 t
d) Molossidae; aerial-hawking insectivores
Molossus ater * 10° Chase 1972 b
e) Rhinolophidae; flutter-detecting insectivores
Rhinolophus rouxi 1.4° Pettigrew et al. 1988 t
f) Megadermatidae; gleaning insectivores/carnivores
Megaderma lyra 20’ Pettigrew et al. 1988 t
Macroderma gigas 16’ Pettigrew et al. 1988 t
g) Phyllostomatidae; frugivores and sanguivores
Carollia perspicillata * 16’ Suthers 1966 b
Anoura geoffroyi * 42’ Suthers 1966 b
Artibeus jamaicensis 27’ Heffner et al. 2000 t
Artibeus cinereus 22’ Pettigrew et al. 1988 t
Desmodus rotundus * 42’ Suthers 1966 b
Desmodus rotundus 3.1 48’ Manske & Schmidt 1976 b
Desmodus rotundus 0.04 2.5° Manske & Schmidt 1976 b
h) Other mammals
Rattus (rat) * 20’ Heffner & Heffner 1992 t
Canis (dog) * 3.6’ Heffner & Heffner 1992 t
Felis (cat) * 2.7’ Hughes 1977 t
Macaca (macaque) * 38’’ Cowey & Ellis 1967 b
Homo (man) * 32’’ Hughes 1977 t
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