Transmission through muscle tissue shapes polarization signals during cuttlefish courtship

This dataset represents analyses of how birefringent arm muscles shape
polarization-based courtship signals in male Doratosepion andreanum,
pairing the revised manuscript and SI for context with all raw
and  processed inputs needed to recreate the figures and extended
data. Optic measurement quantify AoLP/DoLP across arm regions and
wavelengths, and map how transmitted light rotates relative to background
illumination. Pixel-wise polarimetry maps capture the spatial mosaic of
AoLP/DoLP in displaying arms, and birefringence model fits report
individual optical parameters and contributions of different optical
mechanism. The accompanying R workflow converts polarization images into
AoLP/DoLP fields and interneuron activity estimates, enabling direct reuse
or extension to new datasets. In this study, we show that transparent
muscle tissue in cuttlefish can actively shape visual signals for
courtship by modulating light polarization—the orientation of light wave
oscillation. Using photo-polarimetry, we reveal that sexually ornamented
cuttlefish arms display a spatial pattern of horizontal and vertical
polarization. This enhances visual contrast optimally for cuttlefish
polarization vision. The pattern arises from light transmission across a
birefringent muscle layer that rotates the angle of polarization.