“Bulls are enraged by the color red”

It's a common scene in popular culture: a bull, snorting and pawing the ground, charging furiously at a matador's vibrant red cape. This dramatic image has led many to believe that the color red itself is what enrages these powerful animals. However, this widely held belief is actually a misconception.

The truth is that bulls, like many other mammals, are dichromatic, meaning they primarily see in shades of yellow, blue, and grey. They are largely colorblind to red and green. Therefore, a bull does not perceive the matador's cape as a blazing crimson object that incites its fury. Instead, what provokes the bull's charge is the sudden, erratic movement of the cape. The swirling and flapping of the fabric are what capture the bull's attention and trigger its instinctual response to a perceived threat or challenge.

So, if bulls can't see red, why is the matador's cape, known as a muleta, traditionally red? The historical reason is quite practical. The deep red color serves to effectively mask any bloodstains that may appear on the cape during the bullfight. This is done for aesthetic reasons, to maintain the spectacle's visual appeal and prevent the audience from being overtly disturbed by the sight of blood. The myth likely persists because the visual association of a charging bull and a red cape is so strong and has been reinforced through centuries of tradition and media portrayals.