Why do people have different coloured iris. it's basically a muscle ain't it?

i m not so sure bout shakespearian's answer, cos i'm sure "eye colour" was genetic and if its just a case of different lights reflecting and absorbing, how can this explain the genetic component (i m quite interested in this too)....its a good question

Why do people have different coloured iris. it's basically a muscle ain't it?
o ok, nice to know...thnx for that :) Report It
Reply:It depends on the amount of melanin in the iris. Less melanin...lighter color; more melanin...darker color.
Reply:Its genetic, we inherit our genetic make up from our parents and that decides which colour your eyes will be. Its all to do with dominant and recessive genes, if you have blue eyes the genes for this colour are turned on and are the dominant ones.
Reply:It's genetic why people have different coloured irises. But it isn't a muscle. It connects to a muscle. If you really want the detailed explanation, go to Wikipedia.
Reply:Silly as it sounds, but everybody's Iris is the same, there is no real pigment. What happens is that the clear fluid within that region of the eye absorbs and deflects light differently from one person to the next. This absorption and reflection of light produces a variant in the light spectrum and causes the eye colour....amazing huh!
Reply:This is due to the condition Heterochromia (also known as a heterochromia iridis or heterochromia iridium) an ocular condition in which one iris is a different color from the other iris (complete heterochromia), or where the part of one iris is a different color from the remainder (partial heterochromia or sectoral heterochromia). Uncommon in humans, it is often an indicator of ocular disease, such as chronic iritis or diffuse iris melanoma, but may also occur as a normal variant. I have complete heterochromia.
Reply:Definition of Iris.

The colored portion of the eye, the iris is membrane located between the cornea and lens. Its round, central opening (the pupil) regulates the entrance of light into the eye by contracting and dilating (expanding).