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3-D Praying Mantis Vision Confounds Evolution BY JEFFREY P. TOMKINS, PH.D. * | THURSDAY, MARCH 08, 2018 In the animal kingdom, many types of creatures use stereo vision to determine the distances between them and visible objects. In humans, each of our eyes records a slightly different version of what is observed. These two different views are then accurately merged in our brains to produce a single image—computationally using the differences between the two images to allow us to visually gauge depth and distance. This process, referred to as stereo vision, isn’t unique to humans. Animals like monkeys, dogs, bats,...

Researchers at Newcastle University, U.K. believe they’ve discovered a differently evolved form of stereo vision in mantises. The research team studied the phenomenon in the insects precisely as one would hope — by attaching a pair of tiny 3D glasses to their bug eyes. The scientists attached a mantis-sized pair of dual-color 3D glasses to the insects’ eyes, using beeswax as temporary adhesive. The team then showed video of potential prey, which the mantises lunged at. In that respect, the bugs appeared to approach 3D image processing in much the same way humans do.

As humans, we experience an amazing world of colour, but what can other animals see? Some see much more than us, but how they use this vision is largely unknown. We see what we see because our eyes have three photoreceptors, red, green and blue. Our vision is good compared to dogs which have only two photoreceptors (green and blue), but is nothing compared to many birds who have four photoreceptors: ultraviolet (UV) as well as red, green and blue. The addition of a UV photoreceptor is hard to imagine, but if we consider invertebrate vision it gets even more...

A praying mantis interacts with Florida players during today's Marlins/Nationals game. Some enjoy the mantis's company, other are less than amused. One freaks out when the mantis jumps on him which sends the announcers into a laughing fit.

LONDON (Reuters) – The amazing eyes of a giant shrimp living on Australia's Great Barrier Reef could hold the key to developing a new type of super high-quality DVD player, British scientists said on Sunday. Mantis shrimps, dubbed "thumb splitters" by divers because of their vicious claws, have the most complex eyes in the animal kingdom. They can see in 12 primary colors, four times as many as humans, and can also detect different kinds of light polarization -- the direction of oscillation in light waves.

BAE to develop unmanned aircraft with British Defense Ministry14 Jul, 2008, 2127 hrs IST, AGENCIES FARNBOROUGH: BAE Systems PLC said on Monday it will develop an unmanned aircraft that can drop laser-guided bombs and fire missiles in a program jointly funded by Britain's Ministry of Defense. BAE announced the plans for the propeller-powered vehicle, known as Mantis, at the Farnborough International Airshow, outside London, and displayed a full-size model on the tarmac. The deal with the Defense Ministry, which covers the first phase of development and flight testing only, is designed to demonstrate the potential of a large unmanned aircraft...