The Unique motion detecting eyes of a miniature predator

Our vertebrate eyes are but one of at least 10 distinct design solutions evolved to deal with the challenge of perceiving the visual world. These can be broadly grouped into two classes, each accommodating the competing tasks of high-resolution vision and motion detection. Some animals have large eyes that address both requirements in a single structure. This obliges them to allocate vast neural resources to the resulting processing load, or, otherwise, to compromise visual acuity. The alternative design that segregates the tasks of motion and form processing into separate systems is unique to spiders and makes relatively modest computational demands, while achieving high acuity and large filed of view. Jumping spiders are renowned for their complex visually mediated behaviour, yet we know little about how this is achieved. Current knowledge about motion detection in jumping spiders is presented.