Surf and turf vision: Patterns and predictors of visual acuity in compound eye evolution

• Published in: Arthropod structure & development 2021-01, Vol.60, p.101002-101002, Article 101002
• Main Authors: Feller, Kathryn D., Sharkey, Camilla R., McDuffee-Altekruse, Alyssa, Bracken-Grissom, Heather D., Lord, Nathan P., Porter, Megan L., Schweikert, Lorian E.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Arthropod phylogeny; Crustacea; Hexapoda; Light; Sensory ecology; Spatial resolution
• ISSN: 1467-8039; 1873-5495
• DOI: 10.1016/j.asd.2020.101002

Eyes have the flexibility to evolve to meet the ecological demands of their users. Relative to camera-type eyes, the fundamental limits of optical diffraction in arthropod compound eyes restrict the ability to resolve fine detail (visual acuity) to much lower degrees. We tested the capacity of several ecological factors to predict arthropod visual acuity, while simultaneously controlling for shared phylogenetic history. In this study, we have generated the most comprehensive review of compound eye visual acuity measurements to date, containing 385 species that span six of the major arthropod classes. An arthropod phylogeny, made custom to this database, was used to develop a phylogenetically-corrected generalized least squares (PGLS) linear model to evaluate four ecological factors predicted to underlie compound eye visual acuity: environmental light intensity, foraging strategy (predator vs. non-predator), horizontal structure of the visual scene, and environmental medium (air vs. water). To account for optical constraints on acuity related to animal size, body length was also included, but this did not show a significant effect in any of our models. Rather, the PGLS analysis revealed that the strongest predictors of compound eye acuity are described by a combination of environmental medium, foraging strategy, and environmental light intensity. •Database resource of compound eye acuities from 385 species.•De novo arthropod phylogeny representing 278 of the species in the acuity database.•Foraging strategy, environmental medium, and light intensity predict compound eye acuity.•Body size does not correlate with compound eye acuity after phylogenetic correction.•Optical eye type does not correspond to visual acuity.