“So different animals in different species of life, they have got one type of consciousness very strong. Just like you can see the vultures. It is a low-graded animal. But it goes four miles above the earth and it can see where is a dead body. You cannot do that. You cannot see even twenty yards after.

But the animal, another animal, the vulture, he can see… From four miles away he can find out where there is a dead body. So this consciousness of eating, sleeping, mating and defending, that is common. In one animal or, it is very strong. In another man, animal, it is not so strong. But this consciousness is there. But this God consciousness is not there except in human being.”

Srimad-Bhagavatam 1.3.25
by His Divine Grace A.C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada
Los Angeles, September 30, 1972

The Fascinating Eyesight of Birds | Yahoo! Contributor Network

Yahoo! Contributor Network — Bald eagles are capable of seeing fish in the water from several hundred feet above, while soaring, gliding or in flapping flight. This is quite an extraordinary feat, since most fish are counter-shaded, meaning they are darker on top and thus harder to see from above. Fishermen can confirm how difficult it is to see a fish just beneath the surface of the water from only a short distance away.

A bird’s eye view can take on new meaning when we realize just how complicated their vision really is. It’s easy to understand how the slightest movement from a window while watching birds feed nearby can cause a quick departure. They can spot the slightest movement when we think we’re being unobtrusive. Bird watchers will still keep spying and birds will still spot us. After all, they do have the advantage of a bird’s eye view.

Of course the eagle is renowned for it’s amazing vision and the bald eagle is no exception. It has astounding capabilities with its eyes. An eagle’s eye is almost as large as a human eye, but with vision that is four times sharper than a human with perfect vision. According to www.baldeagleinfo.com, the bald eagle has two centers of focus known as foveae.

This majestic bird can see both forward and to the side at the same time and actually focus on both places! This website also states, “The eagle can probably identify a rabbit moving almost a mile away. That means that an eagle flying at an altitude of 1000 feet over open country could spot prey over an area of almost three square miles from a fixed position.”

As if all of these vision capabilities aren’t enough, birds also see in color. It’s believed by scientists that birds see color in much the same way as humans but a bird’s retina is more complex than ours. They have a special area in the retina which contain colored droplets of oil. The quantity of oil, the location and the color of the droplets of oil vary from species to species.

A bird’s eye view can take on new meaning when we realize just how complicated their vision really is. It’s easy to understand how the slightest movement from a window while watching birds feed nearby can cause a quick departure. They can spot the slightest movement when we think we’re being unobtrusive. Bird watchers will still keep spying and birds will still spot us. After all, they do have the advantage of a bird’s eye view.