Just found out chickens can see more colors than we can, and it's messing with my coop design

Honestly, I was reading an old poultry science book from the library and it said chickens have four types of color cones in their eyes, while humans only have three. This means they see ultraviolet light and colors we can't even imagine. Tbh, I always painted my coop a basic red because I liked it, but now I'm wondering if that color is stressing them out or looks totally different to them. Has anyone else picked coop colors based on what the birds might actually see?

3 comments

3 Comments

jakelee2d agoMost Upvoted

Actually, @grant.luna, that study sounds like it missed the stress angle completely.

grant.luna1mo ago

That bit about them seeing colors we can't imagine is a little off. They see more colors, but it's not like new ones, it's more like they see the blends and shades within our spectrum way better. The ultraviolet thing is real though. Your red coop probably looks incredibly vivid and detailed to them, not necessarily stressful. I read a study that said they actually prefer reds and oranges in their environment.

the_ivan1mo ago

But if they see ultraviolet, that's literally a color we can't see. Our eyes just can't process that wavelength at all. It's not just a better version of what we see, it's a whole different part of the light map.