How good is gerbils' eyesight?

[t1gg3er]

We have 2 tanks about 8 feet away from each other in the same room & both sets of gerbils sit on their platforms looking in the direction of the other tank so I was wondering if they can actually see each other or whether they sense each other in other ways? There's no thumping or darting around.  They seem to just sit & look at each other in a curious kind of way.

[betty]

My gerbils don't sometimes even react to each other when their tanks are touching! Gormless...

I watch one digging away frantically on the glass and the other one just centimeters away just walks right by.

[t1gg3er]

Ha ha

The 2 sets that seem interested in each other are Gizzy & the 2 older pups still with her and then in the other tank Sparky (dad) & their other 2 boys. I was wondering whether they can actually see each other & whether there's any kind of connection there even though they've been separated for 4 weeks. Or is that just me being sentimental?

[vexorg]

I'm not sure they can see other gerbils, but they can see us move across the room. They seem to vary, some will see and jump some distance, other act as if blind as a bat.

[betty]

There's also the 'prey' instinct. Mine will all take flight if a bird flies past the window and creates a fast moving shadow.

Perhaps that is more important to a gerbil visually than seeing close up things...

[t1gg3er]

I suppose in the wild sensing & reacting to movement and/or sound would be far more important to them than being able to see clearly over distances. They are strange though - I can be clattering around the room & none of them react & yet if I'm sat down & make the slightest movement like turning my head they take flight.

[vexorg]

Ours have always been the same, you can be talking got them, have one out the cage, and the other suddenly panics and belts round the cages to hide.

[vexorg]

Is there any difference between black eyes and red eyes? maybe just ours, the black eye gerbils seem to see better, seem to respond to visual stuff more.

[betty]

Yes, I have read that the red-eyed gerbils eyesight deteriorates throughout their life on exposure to sunlight. Without the pigment of the dark eyes, the inner eye parts get gradually damaged and they can totally lose their sight and just see light and dark - (which is sort of all that pet gerbils need - what with their super skilled whiskers...)

I might read up more on it again...

[ninestone]

Here's an interesting page with discussion on rat's vision:
www.ratbehavior.org/RatVision.htm
From the same sight, a video of what a rat might see:
www.ratbehavior.org/RatCam.htm

Gerbils would be similar, essentially fuzzy and mostly black and white. As has been already discussed their vision is most important for seeing movement.

I would guess that your gerbils would see the occasional movements of the others in the opposite tank, which might intrigue them to "keep watch"

[vexorg]

Ours definitely see more than movement, our hyper ones recognise their surrounding, can jump to the bars or the open cage or hanging bridge never missing. When out, you can see them judge and guess distances to jump to ledges. He's funny when it's border line just to far, he shuffles rapidly back and forth trying to decide will I make it.

The same mad ones we've had with good eye sight don't seem to pay much attention to their whiskers. We can't put smaller tubes in because they get their head stuck. Pepper (profile pic) was the first with good eye sight, gave her a small cardboard tube and don't the gerbil norm of try put her head in. Tried again, then third time got stuck and started running around with tube firmly stuck. So now we have to check for smart gerbils or stupid gerbils.

The black eyed one, Ceil, loves to climb, jump explore whenever he sees a way out. But he'll completely ignore you if you touch his whiskers, nose, teeth, chin. Never seen a gerbil like that, that didn't seem to care. The most you'll get sometimes is a paw to push you aside, Whiskers seem to not matter to some of them.