Fly eye mystery: Research provides insight into why flies have fastest vision in animal kingdom

Thursday, October 11, 2012 - 13:00 in Biology & Nature

Fly eyes have the fastest visual responses in the animal kingdom, but how they achieve this has long been an enigma. A new study shows that their rapid vision may be a result of their photoreceptors - specialised cells found in the retina - physically contracting in response to light. The mechanical force then generates electrical responses that are sent to the brain much faster than, for example, in our own eyes, where responses are generated using traditional chemical messengers. The study was published today, October 12, in the journal Science.

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