Topography of ganglion cells in the retina of the duck (Anas platyrhynchos var. domesticus)

Abstract

The purpose of this study was to define ganglion cell density, size and topography in the retina of the mallard duck. After killing adult mallard ducks (Anas platyrhynchos var. domesticus), their eyes were removed using pentobarbital (30 mg/kg). The retinas were isolated, whole mount specimens were prepared by staining with 0.1% cresyl violet and then fixing the tissues for study. The retinal ganglion cells were counted, mapped and measured. The mean total number of ganglion cells was estimated at approximately 1.7 × 106 and the retinal area centralis had the highest ganglion cell density with 15 820 cells/mm2. The number of ganglion cell bodies was highest in the temporal area, followed by the nasal, dorsal and ventral areas. Ganglion cell size ranged from 56 to 406 μm2. A population of small ganglion cells persisted into the central area just above the optic disc and the largest soma area was in the ventral zone of the retina. This localization of ganglion cells suggests that the quality of vision is not equal in all the areas of the duck retina and the central part may have the highest vision quality as a function of the retinal ganglion cells.

Effect of Various Monochromatic LED Light Colors on Performance, Blood Properties, Bone Mineral Density, and Meat Fatty Acid Composition of Ducks

“…Ducks are a poultry species but as waterfowl their digestive physiology, body composition and growth rate, and visual perception are different from those of chickens (Rahman et al, 2007;Siregar and Farrell, 1980). It has been generally assumed that light color does not need to be changed between poultry species and that light color from broilers could be used for ducks.…”

“…Therefore, the relation between light color and the performance is still an important issue. However, Martin (1993) reported that duck vision is based on lenticular (lens) mechanisms and that there are differences in retinal ganglion cell number between ducks and chickens (Rahman et al, 2007).…”

Number and density of retinal photoreceptor cells with emphasis on oil droplet distribution in the Mallard Duck (Anas platyrhynchos var. domesticus)

“…The peripheral retina contained slightly fewer numbers of cells in relation to density. The average total number of photoreceptor cells in the whole retina was approximately 6.3 million, which is approximately four (3.70 times) times more than the total number of ganglion cells (1 728 191 ± 339 374) reported previously (Rahman et al . 2006).…”

“…Because of this specialization in the retina, duck offers an excellent opportunity to extend on‐going topographic studies of photoreceptor cells and oil droplets. We also wished to determine whether retinal regions of high photoreceptor density coincide with previously described peak cell densities of the GCL (Rahman et al . 2006).…”

“…domesticus ). Our previous study regarding the specialization of the ganglion cell layer (GCL) revealed that the central area of the retina has a high density of ganglion cells (Rahman et al . 2006).…”