Journal article
Bats respond to polarity of a magnetic field
Royal Society of London. Proceedings B. Biological Sciences, Vol.274(1627), pp.2901-2905
2007
PMCID: PMC2288691
PMID: 17848365
Abstract
Bats have been shown to use information from the Earth's magnetic field during orientation. However, the mechanism underlying this ability remains unknown. In this study we investigated whether bats possess a polarity- or inclination-based compass that could be used in orientation. We monitored the hanging position of adult Nyctalus plancyi in the laboratory in the presence of an induced magnetic field of twice Earth-strength. When under the influence of a normally aligned induced field the bats showed a significant preference for hanging at the northern end of their roosting basket. When the vertical component of the field was reversed, the bats remained at the northern end of the basket. However, when the horizontal component of the field was reversed, the bats changed their positions and hung at the southern end of the basket. Based on these results, we conclude that N. plancyi, unlike all other non-mammalian vertebrates tested to date, uses a polarity-based compass during orientation in the roost, and that the same compass is also likely to underlie bats' long-distance navigation abilities.
Details
- Title
- Bats respond to polarity of a magnetic field
- Authors
- Yinan Wang (Author) - Chinese Academy of SciencesYongxin Pan (Author) - Chinese Academy of SciencesStuart Parsons (Author) - University of AucklandMichael Walker (Author) - East China Normal UniversityShuyi Zhang (Author) - East China Normal University
- Publication details
- Royal Society of London. Proceedings B. Biological Sciences, Vol.274(1627), pp.2901-2905
- Publisher
- Royal Society Publishing
- DOI
- 10.1098/rspb.2007.0904
- ISSN
- 1471-2954
- PMID
- 17848365; PMC2288691
- Organisation Unit
- School of Science, Technology and Engineering; University of the Sunshine Coast, Queensland
- Language
- English
- Record Identifier
- 99576107602621
- Output Type
- Journal article
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