Are bulls color blind?

barbs42

Yes, bulls are color blind. Since the seventeenth century fighting bulls have been bred on special ranches. The animals go through several selection processes during their first three years, in which only those with the best stamina, courage, physical appearance, and coloration are selected for eventual corrida combat. Bulls never receive realistic training in preparation for combat. This is because they must, for symbolic reasons, be virginal regarding actual fighting experience. Also, because of their excellent memory, experienced bulls would be apt to develop tricky tactics rather than react sheerly on the basis of raw courage and instinct as is expected. Like all other cattle, fighting bulls are color blind, and their interest in the red cape used to attract them is only because of its movement. May 06 00, 10:06 PM

Master_Algie

A common misconception about cattle (particularly bulls) is that they are enraged by the color red (something provocative is often said to be "like a red rag to a bull"). This is incorrect, as cattle are red-green colour-blind. The myth arose from the use of red capes in the sport of bullfighting; in fact, two different capes are used. The capote is a large, flowing cape that is magenta and yellow. The more famous muleta is the smaller, red cape, used exclusively for the final, fatal segment of the fight. It is not the color of the cape that angers the bull, but rather the movement of the fabric that irritates the bull and incites it to charge. Although cattle cannot distinguish red from green, they do have two kinds of colour receptors in their retinas (cone cells) and so are theoretically able to distinguish some colours, probably in a similar way to other red-green colour-blind or dichromatic mammals (such as dogs, cats, horses and up to ten percent of male humans). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cattle [Added reference link - McG] Dec 15 06, 4:16 PM

zbeckabee

Bulls are color-blind. They charge the red cape because it is moving, not because it is red. http://www.colormatters.com/kids/animals.html Feb 04 08, 10:23 PM