I read in school that prey have eyes on the sides of the head (sheep, cows, etc) to spot predators coming whereas predators have eyes on the front. Is this rule not applicable to marine biology?
In: Biology
Furthermore, it’s not “predators have front facing eyes” but more of “as a rule of thumb, mammalian predators tend to have front facing eyes”. Eagles and crocodiles for example are predators and have side facing eyes.
Land predators rely on sight more than sharks do, while sharks rely on smell more. Hammerheads are the best example, their eyes are way out to the side right? They sense the electromagnetic field of their prey, even below the sand.
Like with people, land predators generally get the best view of something they want to eat when looking directly at it. So for this reason both eyes generally focus in front.
Herbivores generally need to see all around themselves so their eyes are on the side of their heads letting them see behind and in front to a degree.
Sharks and other water creatures all have their eyes on the side because they need a more 360 degree field of view.
Front-facing eyes are good for seeing in 3d and estimating distance. A lot of predators don’t hunt primarily by vision.
Sharks have an excellent sense of smell as well as their Lorenzo’s sense for detecting bio-electric signatures. Most fish also have senses along the length of their body to detect movement in the water.
In fact, sharks actually roll their eyes back into their head to protect them when they pounce for a bite.
Lots of predators don’t rely on eyesight at all. A lot of nocturnal hunters hunt by scent and sound like hedgehogs. Invertebrate hunters often have complex senses for detecting all kinds of chemical signatures as well as vibrations in the air and ground. Bats and whales can perceive extremely accurate ‘pictures’ of their environment and prey through echolocation.
Stereoscopic vision is just one method.
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