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Incredible new camera recreates how animals see the world with 92% accuracy
How animals see the world has captured our imaginations for decades and now, scientists have developed a new camera that can recreate what the eyes of certain animals are able to see.
Researchers at the University of Sussex in the UK and George Mason University in the US have published a report in the scientific journal PLOS Biology unveiling their groundbreaking work which can replicate the colors that animals can see but the human eye cannot.
How the pioneering camera works
Despite being a cutting-edge piece of technology, the camera system used to replicate how animals can see is built from commercially available Sony A6400 cameras that are housed in a modular, 3D-printed casing.
In order to capture animal-view videos, the system records footage in four channels simultaneously – blue, red, green and ultraviolet (UV).
The video data is then transformed into figures that match up with our current understanding of animal eye photoreceptors. This gives us a never-before-seen glimpse into how various creatures in nature see the world with a reported accuracy of up to 92%.
For example, honeybees and some birds can see in ultraviolet, which gives them an extra element of vision that helps to detect potential prey or predators. Ordinarily, human eyes are unable to see in this way but the groundbreaking technology means we can get an idea, through the image below, of what a bird might be able to see.
Speaking in a media release alongside the reports publication, Assistant Professor Daniel Hanley of the Hanley Color Lab at George Mason University said: Weve long been fascinated by how animals see the world. Modern techniques in sensory ecology allow us to infer how static scenes might appear to an animal; however, animals often make crucial decisions on moving targets.
“Here, we introduce hardware and software tools for ecologists and filmmakers that can capture and display animal-perceived colors in motion.
How the system may be used in the future
The report into the new camera system and the data within have been made available within the public domain.
It is hoped that doing so will open new avenues of research for scientists, to further our understanding of how animals view the world and build on the technology that has been developed.
On top of that, the report states that the new camera system will allow filmmakers to produce dynamic, accurate depictions of how animals see the world around them.
We have to say, watching a new David Attenborough nature documentary that has been filmed to replicate how the animals on-screen can see is a fascinating prospect.
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