What Are the Three Different Types of Cones?

Cones and rods in the eye make up total vision, including night vision. Rods do not see in color, but rather see only in black and white. The cones in the eye see color. Color blindness occurs when the cones are missing or defective. Missing or defective cones from birth cause genetic color blindness while color blindness that occurs later in life results from a variety of causes such as injuries. The three cones in the eye show colors based on whether all three cones are working properly.

Red Cone

• The red cone in the eye shows red colors. When we see something as red, the red cone perceives the color reflected from the item. Colors like pink or purple result from the way the three colors see the item together and form the ultimate color. Long Wavelength Sensitive refers to the red cone due to the position of the red cone in vision spectrum.

Blue Cone

• The Short Wavelength Sensitive cone refers to the blue cone. It is on the opposite end of the spectrum from red. Blue perception comes from blue reflections on an object. Red, green and other colors become absorbed by the object so that they are not seen.

Green Cone

• The Middle Wavelength Sensitive cone refers to the green cone, which sits between the red and blue on the spectrum.