# Both my Mantises eyes changed color drastically



## MuscleMantis (May 31, 2016)

Umm i dont know if this is okay. There eyes were light green then all of the sudden vibrant purple? My female is an adult and suddenly got purple eyes over night!!! My male is one molt away from being an adult and suddenly got purple eyes the same time the female did. I dont know if there sick but they are both red armed mantises


----------



## Krissim Klaw (May 31, 2016)

Did the color change occur when it got dark? Many species eye colors change at night, often getting completely black, red, ect. This pigment change allows them to better see in the dark.


----------



## MuscleMantis (May 31, 2016)

No it was through the day and they have been that color ever since.


----------



## MuscleMantis (Jun 1, 2016)

Krissim Klaw said:


> Did the color change occur when it got dark? Many species eye colors change at night, often getting completely black, red, ect. This pigment change allows them to better see in the dark.


nvm your right XD i was just freaking out XD they slowly turned purple as it got darker... thats really cool!!!! thx for letting me know that!!!! i thought they had gotten sick.


----------



## Descartes (Jun 1, 2016)

This is a pigment called rhodopsin; it is actually the same pigment you use when you adjust to the dark. Mantids are used to study several visual systems in humans. the rhodopsin molecule in mantids is more similar to human rhodopsin than other known insects (flies).

Basically, when a light photon hits the center of the pigment molecule, it folds in half. This change in shape makes it easier to see in bright light. In the dark, it takes more time to return it to its original shape, and that is why it takes longer for your eyes to adjust to the dark than to the light. 

In mantids, you can see the natural purple color of the rhodopsin in the eyes in the dark, and when you put them in bright light it will very rapidly disappear, leaving the eyes green. You'll notice the change back to purple takes longer, probably a couple of hours, in the dark.

Next time you go to the movies and have to adjust to the dark, think of your mantis and rhodopsin!

Next time you see a politician talking about "wasteful" spending on basic research on stuff like "what a bug sees," think about voting for someone else 

Here is a wikipedia article with the full details of how it works. It uses lots of fancy words: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Visual_phototransduction


----------



## Domanating (Jun 6, 2016)

I've had one situation with a male M. Religiosa whose eyes stayed dark permanently.

After his last molt, he had the typical brown eyes for a brown mantis:







But about 1 week or 2 after the molt his eyes got black and stayed black until his death:






He went on to have a healthy normal life despite this issue


----------

