Wolves have relatively poor frontal vision. They may not be able to recognize members of their own «pack» beyond 100 to 150 feet. This is possibly one reason why the wolf mask accents their facial features and «ears» so greatly.
Their «myopia» evidently stems from the absence of the «fovea centralis», the tiny pit at the back, center of the «retina» which, in «humans», primates and some other animals provides the point of sharpest vision.
Just how clearly a wolf sees when looking directly at an object is, of course, impossible to know, but it seems evident that beyond a short distance their vision must be somewhat blurred, rather like that of a photograph taken with a wide-open lens at a slow shutter speed, as opposed to an exposure taken with the smallest lens «aperture» at a fast speed.
Nevertheless, wolves can see shapes and, especially, movement over long distances, and their peripheral vision is extremely accurate.
They are able to detect even the slightest movements of very small animals, such as a mosquito, at a distance of more than ten feet and the movement of «larger animals» at considerable distances.
There is some controversy as to whether wolves see in color or black and white. Regardless, it is unlikely that they see the various hues of the spectrum as «humans» see them, because the physical makeup of the eye is different.
Nighttime vision for wolves is many times better than «human» vision in the day or night. Wolves can actually see much better and even much more clearly at night.
