Can Rabbits See Color?

Rabbits are great little creatures that have eyes positioned on the side of their head to allow them to see everything that is happening around them. Their field of vision is extremely large, making an exception for the blind spot that is directly in front of the rabbit’s nose.

What you might not have considered, is whether their vision is similar to ours. Your answer? Rabbits do not have a similar vision to us; they perceive things very differently.

Rabbits do have color vision, and they do see color, however, their eyes function very differently to humans. Let’s dive into how rabbits see color!

How Do Rabbits See Color?

Due to the way that their eyes are composed, rabbits only have two-color vision. Two-color vision is known as dichromacy and is common among mammals. Humans have three-color vision. Scientists have said that rabbits have retinas that are more like rods than cones. Cones are the parts of the retina that give humans the ability to see color. 

Rods, which are what rabbits retinas contain, become activated in situations where there is low-light, and they lack color-vision. 

If you were to compare a rabbit’s eye to a human eye, we would likely describe the rabbit as experiencing color blindness. The rabbits are unable to see red and green colors, whereas humans are able to perceive these colors.

Rabbits, therefore, have quite a limited view of color, but they do see color in their own way.

Can Rabbits See Well In The Dark?

While rabbits might not be able to see color in the same way that humans can, they have strength in their eyes in lots of different ways.

Rabbits have extra rods in their eyes that activate when they are in low-light situations. Rabbits are crepuscular animals, and they are more active at dawn and dusk than any other time.

For rabbits, it is more important for them to be able to see in low-light, than it is to be able to see the colors of what they are seeing. 

A rabbit’s eyes have evolved in a way that helps them to see their surroundings when they are in situations where there is very little light. They can’t see in color in daylight, and they can’t see well in hours of complete darkness. 

In daylight, rabbits are likely to see your face in grainy detail, rather than very clearly. It will be your body shape, voice and scent that your rabbit recognizes about you.

This explains why a rabbit will become frightened when you wear something that changes your appearance in a significant way.

A Rabbit’s Wide Range Vision

Rabbits are prey and so it is very important that they can run away from safety in a moment. Their eyes are on the sides of their heads so that they have a very wide range of vision. This characteristic is similar to that of many other animals that are being hunted. 

This is combined with the eyes’ ability to operate one by one, instead of both being linked together. They can operate independently from each other, and this gives the rabbit an opportunity to see movement from all angles.

Are Rabbits Close-Sighted?

Rabbits can see things very close up, and they can see things very far away. This makes them both near and far sighted. 

Rabbits’ eyes are monocular. They have the ability to operate independently from one another. This gives the rabbits far-sighted vision, but it means that their depth perception is very complicated and isn’t very accurate. 

A rabbit’s vision can overlap. This happens when they are looking at something in front of them. This is only a small level of overlap, however, it does mean that they are able to get a very clear understanding of how close something is to them. This makes them nearsighted. 

Do Rabbits Have A Blind Spot?

Rabbits have a small area where they cannot see anything at all. This is known as a blind spot, and it occurs in front of their nose. Quite literally, rabbits cannot see their nose in front of their faces. 

What Do Rabbits See Ahead Of Them?

When rabbits look ahead of themselves and their eyes are facing forward, they will see patterns and shapes. The rear aspect of a rabbit’s vision is there to warn the rabbits if there is any movement or predators behind them that could be creeping up on them.

How To Look After Your Rabbit 

If you have a rabbit, it is important that your pet can experience the natural requirements for its light. If your rabbit is not often exposed to light, then their health will suffer. The rabbit’s poor health due to this could show itself in excess weight.

This is also true if the rabbits are kept in constant light. If they are kept in constant light, the rabbits are also at risk of experiencing eye damage and problems that are related to fertility.  It is also linked to high levels of stress.

Ensuring that rabbits are kept in an environment that is as close to their natural habitat as possible is very important. This is especially true with the eyesight of rabbits, because it is important for their health that they use their eyesight so as not to lose it.

Do Rabbits Blink?

Rabbits do blink their eyes, but they don’t do it anywhere near as often as humans do. They seem to blink about once every 5 minutes.

They don’t need to blink as often as humans because they have extra eyelids that are transparent which will help them to keep their eyes moist because closing their eyes is too dangerous and will put them at risk of being caught by their predators. They will need to keep their eyes open and alert so that they can keep themselves safe.

Final Thoughts 

Rabbits can see color in some ways, but they don’t see color in the same way as humans can. The eyesight of rabbits is a very interesting topic, and you should have plenty of information surrounding this topic now.

Video: What Rabbits See

This popular video gives a great overview of rabbit vision in under 3 minutes!