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Nov 11, 2011

Why Do Crocodiles Eyes Shine So Beautifully at Night?

Those little bright lights belong toyacarés—caiman latirostris. They are broad-snouted caimans, crocodilian reptiles typical of eastern and central South America. Why do their eyes shine in such a pretty way?

It's the crystals inside their retina, inside a layer called tapetum. This tissue reflects light in such a way that makes these yacarés and the rest of the crocodiles have night vision. Oh, little crocodiles, you are so pretty!

These were photographed by Daniel Fox at the Yacaré Pora farm in Ituzaingo, Argentina. He probably thought they were too pretty to ignore. Lewis Carroll agrees:
How doth the little crocodile
Improve upon his shining tail,
And pour the waters of the Nile
On every golden scale!
How cheerfully he seems to grin,
How neatly spreads his claws,
And welcomes little fishes in
With gently smiling jaws!
Next time you are in the zoo, don't forget to put your hand between the bars of the crocodile cage and give them whatever food you have. They like it all and they are such gentle, grateful beasts!


8 comments:

Guy Movie Blogger said...

Whoa that's neat. I get freaked out when cats eyes light up at night. Crocs = scared shitless.

Lot's Wife said...

Crystals in croc eyes? With a little tweaking they could have laser vision!

The Offender said...

They are trying to get you to come join them in the water.

Styron said...

are you serious? wow!

Outcast said...

That's pretty cool. A tad bit complicated but still extremely cool to know.

Unknown said...

wow, that's a really cool post :D
I've never thought about that thing!

Adam said...

pretty cool fact

Anonymous said...

Crystal eyes!