The Cutest Animals With Big Eyes That All Kids Will Love
Gallery
It's aptly said that eyes speak; eyes do speak volumes!
Eyesight plays a crucial role in the survival of the fittest. However, some species have acquired uncommon adaptations to thrive in the wilderness.
The animal world is replete with mammals, reptiles, birds, and insects with diverse characteristics. Each displays unique and amazing attributes.
As we all know, dinosaurs inhabited the earth about a million years ago. Among them, Dreadnoughtus and Titanosaur are believed to have possessed a gigantic size. Some animals have horns, some are adept at changing colors while others have very long necks.
The human world is still oblivious of numerous animals, birds, and insect species existing outside their scrutiny. Many animals like the dodo, Eurasian aurochs, and the woolly mammoth have gone extinct owing to exploitative human activities like deforestation, hunting, and poaching.
Continue reading to explore more about big-eyed animals. You can also indulge yourself with some more fascinating ideas about animals with horns and animals with adaptations.
Why Some Animals Have Huge Eyes
Animals with large eyes have a remarkable appeal. Nevertheless, some creatures acquire big eyes for some significant reasons. Let’s find out more about these reasons.
Geckos are nocturnal reptiles possessing phenomenal night vision. Classified under the order Squamata, they are small animals with big eyes. Did you know that geckos can cleanse their eyes with their elongated, flexible tongues? Sounds weird, doesn't it?
This is because eyelids are absent in most of the gecko species. Due to the lack of eyelids, they can't blink and since they can't blink, their eyes can't be kept moist and clean.
So, they use their tongues instead and lick the transparent outer membrane clean. Geckos hunt mostly at night owing to their excellent night vision and their ultra-sensitivity towards rhe light.
They can picture the world in all shades of color even in the absence of light. Unlike humans, they have vertical pupils that can widen in darkness.
Names Of Animals With Proportionally Larger Eyes Than Their Body
Have you ever heard of the vampire squid? Not to worry, it's not a blood-sucking squid; they're completely harmless. The name was attributed owing to the animal's dark-colored appearance rather than its feeding habits.
In 1903, the German zoologist, Carl Chun came across this octopus-like cephalopod while he was on the Valdivia Expedition. Belonging to the Vampyromorphida order, Vampyroteuthis infernalis or the vampire squid is a member of the Vampyroteuthidae family known to possess the largest eyes.
While its body can grow up to a length of 11 in (28 cm), the diameter of its eye can measure around 0.9 in (2.2 cm) which suggests that its eyes are proportionately larger than its body size!
In fact, no other animal in the world exhibits such a large body-eye ratio.
The body is gelatinous while the coloring of this small cephalopod ranges from velvety black to red. This inhabitant of the tropical and subtropical deep seas feeds mostly on detritus comprising the remnants of isopods, copepods, amphipods, ostracods, and zooplanktons like medusae jellies, larvaceans, and salps.
Mammals With The Largest Eyes
These mammals have exceptionally large eyes that would surely make you fall for them.
The tarsier has a special adaptation: they are cute nocturnal animals with big eyes. Tarsiers have large eyes compared to their tiny body size, almost like a squirrel.
The primate belonging to the Tarsiidae family can be spotted on the islands of Southeast Asia, specifically in Malaysia, the Philippines, and Indonesia. Each eyeball measures 0.63 in (1.6 cm) in diameter which is equivalent to, or even larger than the size of its brain.
Tarsiers have an average length of 4-6 in (10.1-15.2 cm). Interestingly, the body of the tarsiers is smaller to even out the imbalance created by their large eyes and brain.
This anatomy helps these creatures to cling and jump from tree to tree and leap at prey. The tarsier primate found exclusively in Southeast Asia also has the ability to rotate its head up to 180 degrees allowing for a 360-degree vision range.
Since they are nocturnal, most of their activities resume in the dark hours. Apart from the tarsier, mammals such as reindeers, camels, monkeys, rabbits, lemurs, and dogs have large intense eyes.
Have you seen the sphinx cat? It posits a majestic appearance with its sparkling big eyes.
Birds And Insects With The Largest Eyes
Birds are one of the most majestic creations of nature. They come in vibrant shades that are extremely appealing to the visual senses. On the other hand, insects are some of the smallest creatures of the animal kingdom. However, some birds and insects possess unusually beautiful big eyes.
Predatory birds like hawks, owls, and eagles have large, sharp eyes that aid them in locating and capturing prey from great heights. Did you know that the eyeballs of an owl are immobile?
An owl doesn't have eyeballs in reality! The eyes are tubular shaped with the sclerotic rings holding them firmly in place.
Owls have flexible necks that can twist to 90 degrees while their incredible binocular vision allows them greater depth perception. These nocturnal birds enjoy an enhanced color vision during the dark hours of the night. Owls possess eyeshine that helps them to reflect light.
However, the ostrich is the only land vertebrate that has the largest eyes. The axial length measures about 2 in (5 cm).
Another bird species that possess large eyes are commonly found in several houses as pets, it's pigeons! Birds mostly utilize their sharp vision to detect predators and defend themselves in a better way.
Insects mostly have a petite structure. While some exhibit glamorous shades on their body and wings, others evoke a sense of grossness. The dragonfly is a beautiful insect species that comes with two huge compound eyes and three more eyes that have ordinary lenses.
The globulous eyes comprise innumerable lenses. The retinas of a dragonfly are composed of thousands of photoreceptors used to accumulate light and transmit the signal to the interneurons that decode the received information.
On the other hand, some spiders are not entitled to good eyesight despite having eight eyes. The frontal eyes are used to judge distance and perceive colors. A spider depends on taste, vibration, and touch to locate prey and also to navigate.
Marine Animals Which Have The Largest Eyes
Apart from the vampire squid, there are a few other marine animals who have incomparably large eyes. Let's explore to find out more about these organisms.
The mantis shrimp, also called a stomatopod, of the Malacostraca class, exhibits one of the most complex visual arrangements. The species is known to have 16 identified color receptors while humans possess just three.
They are even capable of detecting infrared, polarized, as well as ultraviolet light. Polarization helps them to detect and protect themselves from predators.
Moreover, the mantis shrimp doesn't have a single pupil but three of them are placed vertically above one another. This renders separate depth perception to each eye. There are several fish species that are popular for their big eyes.
As the name of the fish suggests, bigeye is popular for its unusually huge eyes. However, this amazing big-eyed fish is not considered to be one of the ideal aquarium pets due to its carnivorous diet.
Reptiles With Spectacularly Large Eyes
Although all reptiles don't qualify to be called cute due to their bold appearance, they have undeniably beautiful eyes and sharp vision.
Lizards are one of the big-eyed animals that dwell on the earth. Chameleons top the list.
You are probably aware that chameleons are adept at the art of camouflage but do you know about their eyes? The species possesses a unique set of eyes that can rotate in every direction and it has access to a range of vision that spans around 360 degrees.
The large bulbous eyes of the chameleon are entirely covered by the eyelid with the only exposing pupil.
This feature helps them to stay vigilant all the time without even moving a leg. You can even rear cute lizards like a chameleon as pets!
Here at Kidadl, we have carefully created lots of interesting family-friendly facts for everyone to enjoy! If you liked our suggestions for animals with big eyes, then why not take a look at animals with opposable thumbs or famous animals.
We Want Your Photos!
More for You
See All
Doctorate specializing in Veterinary Medicine
Oluniyi AkandeDoctorate specializing in Veterinary Medicine
With an accomplished background as a Veterinarian, SEO content writer, and public speaker, Oluniyi brings a wealth of skills and experience to his work. Holding a Doctor of Veterinary Medicine degree from the University of Ibadan, he provides exceptional consulting services to pet owners, animal farms, and agricultural establishments. Oluniyi's impressive writing career spans over five years, during which he has produced over 5000 high-quality short- and long-form pieces of content. His versatility shines through as he tackles a diverse array of topics, including pets, real estate, sports, games, technology, landscaping, healthcare, cosmetics, personal loans, debt management, construction, and agriculture.
Disclaimer
1) Kidadl is independent and to make our service free to you the reader we are supported by advertising. We hope you love our recommendations for products and services! What we suggest is selected independently by the Kidadl team. If you purchase using the Buy Now button we may earn a small commission. This does not influence our choices. Prices are correct and items are available at the time the article was published but we cannot guarantee that on the time of reading. Please note that Kidadl is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon. We also link to other websites, but are not responsible for their content.
2) At Kidadl, we strive to recommend the very best activities and events. We will always aim to give you accurate information at the date of publication - however, information does change, so it’s important you do your own research, double-check and make the decision that is right for your family. We recognise that not all activities and ideas are appropriate for all children and families or in all circumstances. Our recommended activities are based on age but these are a guide. We recommend that these ideas are used as inspiration, that ideas are undertaken with appropriate adult supervision, and that each adult uses their own discretion and knowledge of their children to consider the safety and suitability. Kidadl cannot accept liability for the execution of these ideas, and parental supervision is advised at all times, as safety is paramount. Anyone using the information provided by Kidadl does so at their own risk and we can not accept liability if things go wrong.
3) Because we are an educational resource, we have quotes and facts about a range of historical and modern figures. We do not endorse the actions of or rhetoric of all the people included in these collections, but we think they are important for growing minds to learn about under the guidance of parents or guardians.
