Ultraviolet Vision May Enhance the Ability of Reindeer to Discriminate Plants in Snow

• Published in: ARCTIC
• Main Authors: Tyler, N.J.C., Jeffery, G., Hogg, C.R., Stokkan, K.-A.
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: English
• Published: The Arctic Institute of North America 2014
• Subjects: albedo; caribou; Rangifer; reindeer; foraging; snow; ultraviolet; vascular plants; vision; albédo; renne; fourrage; neige; plantes vasculaires; Norway; Renne; Soi; Arctic; Nord de la Norvège; Northern Norway; Rangifer tarandus
• Online Access: https://journalhosting.ucalgary.ca/index.php/arctic/article/view/67426

In reindeer/caribou (Rangifer tarandus), the lens and cornea of the eye transmit ultraviolet (UV) light, and the retinae respond to it electro-physiologically. Here we tie this finding to the unusual visual environment experienced by these animals and propose that their sensitivity to UV light enhan...