Myopic mammals
Question: I would estimate that about 40 per cent of people that I know need
glasses or contact lenses for distance vision. Assuming that this sample is
typical of the human race, I would like to know why it is that eye problems
prevalent in humans such as myopia (short-sightedness) seem very rare in wild
animals?
As far as I know, myopia is a genetic condition and so is not usually
acquired by habits such as reading small print (otherwise one would expect
recovery after stopping the habit). Obviously, it is not easy to test the
eyesight…
