The fovea centralis (the term fovea comes from the Latin, meaning pit or pitfall) is a small, central pit composed of closely packed cones in the eye. It is located in the center of the macula lutea of the retina.[1][2]
The fovea is responsible for sharp central vision (also called foveal vision), which is necessary in humans for activities where visual detail is of primary importance, such as reading and driving.
The fovea is employed for accurate vision in the direction where it is pointed. It comprises less than 1% of retinal size but takes up over 50% of the visual cortex in the brain.[11] The fovea sees only the central two degrees of the visual field, (approximately twice the width of your thumbnail at arm’s length).[12] If an object is large and thus covers a large angle, the eyes must constantly shift their gaze to subsequently bring different portions of the image into the fovea (as in reading).