The vertebrate eye mediates vision through a neuron-packed tissue called the retina, which has some of the body’s highest energy demands1,2. In birds, the thick inner layer of the retina lacks an internal blood supply. This makes supplying sufficient oxygen (O 2 ) and nutrients to and removing waste products from the densely packed retinal neurons especially challenging. Writing in Nature, Damsgaard et al.3 reveal how neurons in the inner layer of the retina of zebra finch birds (Taeniopygia guttata) can function in the continuous absence of O 2 .
doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-025-04095-0
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Competing Interests The authors declare no competing interests.
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