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I IN EYE OF A FLY, U.S.
Recent electron scanning photographs of insect eyes from Cretaceous shale
deposits in Manitoba, show that moths appeared on earth over hundred
million years before man evolved.
This Robber fly eye contains over 3000 hexagonally shaped omatidia.
Overlapping cells in the compound eyes act as navigational aids. Robber
flies, and dragonflies as well, need this acute vision, as both capture
mosquitoes on the wing.
Eye mimicry a common protection design in butterflies &
animals. Large eyespots may fool predators into believing that a butterfly
is an even bigger predator. The most spectacular example of eye mimicry in
nature is the "O" on the iridescent blue Brazilian Morpho butterfly,
commonly seen flashing through the rain forest.
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