Trichromatic Vision in the Cat

Abstract

Many cat retinal ganglion cells (types X, Y, and W) have inputs from three separate cone systems. Those with peak sensitivities at 450 and 555 nanometers have been previously shown. A γ max cone with a peak sensitivity of 500 nanometers can be differentiated from other cones by spectral sensitivity and from rods by receptive field differences, functioning above rod saturation levels, and by cone-rod breaks in the dark-adaptation curves. The similarity of the three-cone cat retina to the extramacular retina of the rhesus monkey suggests that the cat may have photopic trichromatic vision.