what is the difference between cone cells and rod cells of human eye? why does human see less at night as compared to owl?
Difference between rod cells and cone cells
| Rod Cells | Cone Cells |
| 1. They are responsible for achromatic vision. | 1. They are responsible for colour vision. |
| 2. They are sensitive to light. | 2. They are not light sensitive. |
| 3. They respond to stimuli slowly. | 3. They respond to stimuli quickly. |
| 4. These detect the dim light only in black and white colour | 4. These detect bright light in different colours. |
| 5. They contain one type of photosensitive pigment. | 5. They contain three type of photosensitive pigment. |
The night vision of owls is 100 times as keen as that of human beings, because their eyes are especially adapted for seeing in the dark. They are however colour blind as they have more number of rod shaped receptor cells than cone shaped ones. Operating in bright light, cone cells sharpen details and react to color. As a result they see the objects as blurred due to lesser no of cone cells. Rod cells gather light and owls have 10 times as many of these as do human beings. .Owls have exceptionally large eyes and can control the amount of light entering by expanding or contracting the pupil. Each pupil can act independently of the other so that owls can see objects in the shadows and in bright light at the same time.