Research overview: scotopic sensitivity and the feline visual threshold

Behavioral and electrophysiological studies have probed how little light a cat needs to see, a quantity called the absolute or scotopic threshold. Estimates generally place feline low-light sensitivity well below the human threshold, often cited as roughly six to eight times more sensitive, though exact figures depend on the task and stimulus. This overview surveys the methods used, from discrimination experiments in graded darkness to recordings of retinal and cortical responses to dim flashes. Sensitivity arises from several cooperating features: a rod-rich retina, extensive neural pooling of rod signals, a wide pupil, and the photon-recycling tapetum. The findings explain the everyday observation that cats navigate and hunt confidently in conditions humans find nearly black, and they ground claims about feline night vision in measured psychophysics rather than folklore.