Which animals in URBAN areas can have red eyes (at night)?

reply to post by Vanitas


Cats with blue eyes - such as siamese, for example - reflect red. Same with dogs who have pale eyes.

Or it could have been a European Chupacabra / Mothman hybrid.

reply to post by Vanitas


Hey:

I am not all the way an expert but I do know a smidge more than those who aren't.

Generally, animals that are nocturnal have a Tapetum Lucidum, an extra lense or filter in the eye, this traps the light to allow the retina to better see at night. Sorta of like a one way glass works as a mirror for the fellas in the questioning room on police shows but the detectives are in a dark room. Sorry to gloss it over, just the best laymans transition I can come up with so I could understand the process myself. Animals that lack this layer (once again "generally", as there are exceptions) eyes come back reflecting red (red eye from humans in photos is the blood on the back of the eye focused back by the returned or reflected light taking on that frequency or color) As humans lack the Tapetum Lucidum, we do not reflect back the color of our lenses. Cats, deer, wolves, raccoons, and bats all have this T.L. in their eyes and so often reflect back in a tinge or in the color of their eyes. Note that proximity and power of the light itself have a drastic effect. Cats in photos can come back sometimes with red eye as an example. Yet, when someone shines a red LED at a nocturnal animals eye it will flash back white! I had an amazing discussion with a Fish and Game fellow once: if a deer at night cannot see a green LED, if a person uses a green LED to hunt deer is this considered pit lamping or camouflage? Pit Lamping causes an involuntary reaction causing the deer to freeze while a green LED just isn't seen . . . .
He wasn't even sure himself.
Come on over and come on one of my interpretive night walks and I will happily show you the interesting night stuff sometime.

Long story short: whatever animal it was, I would suspect it is a day creature sneaking out. . . a stray dog by chance?

reply to post by treetraveler


Just to clarify because you're correct but a tad off about the color being reflected in some species.

White eyeshine occurs in many fish, especially walleye; blue eyeshine occurs in many mammals such as horses; yellow eyeshine occurs in mammals such as cats, dogs, and raccoons; and red eyeshine occurs in rodents, opossums and birds.

en.wikipedia.org...

Most women, have red eyes at night,
just saying

reply to post by treetraveler


Thanks for doing some research on the subject a posting the information.

I would like to add that anyone that lives in a urban area anywhere and believes there are no wild animals around are clueless.

ALL urban areas have nocturnal wild animals roaming the streets,garderns and alleys searching for food.

NYC has seen a up swing on the number of coyote and fox wandering the cities streets.

I am sure there are fox in Europe.

Originally posted by TheWalkingFox
reply to post by Vanitas

 

Cats with blue eyes - such as siamese, for example - reflect red. Same with dogs who have pale eyes.

Or it could have been a European Chupacabra / Mothman hybrid.

Yep, my kitty's eyes flash red depending on the light and always in camera shots without red eye reduction and always on mobile cameras.

i643.photobucket.com...

Originally posted by Vanitas

Well yes... but have you ever seen a cat with RED eyes?

It's NOT a rhetorical question; it's just that I haven't.

I am sure - well, almost - that it WAS a cat. But I am sure it wasn't healthy, the poor thing.

After being in a fight, our tom had been clawed in the edge of his eye......it must have bled into the interior of the eye ball, resulting in red 'eyeshine' when I looked at his eye with a flashlight.......but only that injured eye 'glowed' red. It cleared up after a few days, no more red glow.

I did recently watch a new (2010) Monsterquest program on the Mothman. They discussed red 'eyeshine' like the Mothman is 'reported' to have ....and which animals would have it......Owls were their main candidates.

Screech Owls are smallish, and can be fairly unafraid of humans (we had one living in a tree right in the backyard when I was a child), so might be in an urban area.....

reply to post by dave420

No. No cat has ever exhibited psychic abilities, and neither has any dog. No human has either, for that matter.

And if you can't back that up with fact then let me say I'll scratch your post up to quackery.

Many animals and people exhibit psychic abilities. Fact. Start another thread if you want to know, I'm not going to interrupt this one for this flooey.

ON TOPIC: I was told once all carnivores had red eyes at night and omnivors and vegitarians a green shine.

I was convinced on hearsay it was true.

Then I opened my eyes and started looking.

Nope, it's an old wives tale...

reply to post by ravenshadow13


Hard to be a tad off:

I guide night hikes and have hiked at night for years. Prefer my own experience to wikipedia.

Thanks though.

I would also caution many of us with our "color of eyes":
As different filament bulbs, LEDS, and halogen/krypton bulbs all have a different effect on what color we see reflected back, it can be extremely difficult to know which animal was at the end of the beam.

I have seen the same show and references as other above commentators . . . commentors . . . contributors! (there we go) but dont always get the same results when I am out and about. It sure is a funny and amazing world. The only certainty I have most times is that science will eventually prove everything I believe wrong . . . on a continual basis.

Maybe we should start a forum with flashlight type, species, and time of year . . . maybe we will be able to establish a scientific benchmark to get a consistent set of answers. I would be very interested myself.

[edit on 14-2-2010 by treetraveler]

I had a dog that had 1 good eye and one bad eye, the good eye had a blue green the bad eye was red, in reflected light. I think there is your answer aside from that...Humans...