​7 animals with the most unusual eyes​

From quirky shapes to wacky abilities, the animal kingdom never ceases to amaze us! It is full of bizarre eyes that defy human imagination. Ranging from creatures who can see 360 degrees around them to some who can see colors invisible to human eyes, built perfectly to survive in the wild. Let us look into it!

Sea urchins don’t have pronounced eyes, as many other animals do. They have tentacle-like eyes that are quick to detect any light around them. Their spiky body acts as one big, spine-covered eye. Instead of having a single eye, their visual stimuli are stimulated through photoreceptor cells distributed across numerous “tube feet”.

Known for their extra-large eyes. Tarsiers are a species mostly found in Brunei, Malaysia, and Indonesia. Each eyeball is around 16 mm wide, which is almost as large as its brain. The animal's eyes are so large that they can’t rotate them, so instead they turn their heads around 180 degrees to locate their way.

Mantis shrimp have the world’s best eyes; they have 16 photoreceptors in their eyes and can see UV as well as polarized light. Their eyes can detect depth and move each eye independently. Mantis shrimp can even see some colors invisible to us, making them the champions of the visual world.

Their eyes are known to have independent movement, allowing them to see almost 360 degrees, basically like a panoramic camera. Their eyes can transition between monocular and binocular vision. While they are hunting for their prey, they use monocular vision.

Dragonfly eyes see the world in ultra-multicolor. Their vision is better than anything ever seen in the entire world. Dragonflies have a whopping 30 different visual opsins, and all while having the ability to see colors invisible to the human eye, such as UV light.

Gecko eyes are 350 times more sensitive than human eyes. Geckos have a much higher density of oversized cone cells in their retinas that are responsible for detecting light wavelengths. They have vertical pupils that can contrict into slits and they also have specialised lenses that can also see in night and dim colors in the day.

An ostrich's eye is bigger than its brain! Their eyeballs measure two inches across and are about the size of a billiard ball. This offers a clear field of vision for the birds as they search for food and spot potential predators. Ostriches also have very long eyelashes that protect their eyes from external dirt.