How Homing Pigeons Navigate

goombah99 writes "Over the years there has been much research and speculation on how homing pigeons navigate. The assumption has been they need some novel sensory mechanism to give them north-south orientation information. Theories included magnetic field sensitivty and polarized light sensitivity, other possibilies include analysing the motion of the sun. But British researchers appear to have cracked the case: they follow roads and landmarks and don't require special senses. Birds, it seems, actually follow the longer as-the-dog-walks path of the road, even circling over round-abouts rather than the straight 'as-the-bird-flies' path one would expect if they used absolute position sensing."

Comments

Ok

[El]

So, how do they navigate over water? This report would indicate that pidgeons are incapable of crossing, say, the English Channel. This could be tested easily by taking a pidgeon to France and seeing if it can find it's way home...

did this YEARS ago...

[moosesocks]

The British have become pros at determining the migratory patterns of small, insignificant birds. Why, back in the 12th century, England's own king was doing similar research on swallows...

SOLDIER #1: Where'd you get the coconuts?

ARTHUR: We found them.

SOLDIER #1: Found them? In Mercia? The coconut's tropical!

ARTHUR: What do you mean?

SOLDIER #1: Well, this is a temperate zone.

ARTHUR: The swallow may fly south with the sun or the house martin or the plover may seek warmer climes in winter, yet these are not strangers to our land?

SOLDIER #1: Are you suggesting coconuts migrate?

ARTHUR: Not at all. They could be carried.

SOLDIER #1: What? A swallow carrying a coconut?

ARTHUR: It could grip it by the husk!

SOLDIER #1: It's not a question of where he grips it! It's a simple question of weight ratios! A five ounce bird could not carry a one pound coconut.

ARTHUR: Well, it doesn't matter. Will you go and tell your master that Arthur from the Court of Camelot is here?

SOLDIER #1: Listen. In order to maintain air-speed velocity, a swallow needs to beat its wings forty-three times every second, right?

ARTHUR: Please!

SOLDIER #1: Am I right?

ARTHUR: I'm not interested!

SOLDIER #2: It could be carried by an African swallow!

SOLDIER #1: Oh, yeah, an African swallow maybe, but not a European swallow. That's my point.

SOLDIER #2: Oh, yeah, I agree with that.

ARTHUR: Will you ask your master if he wants to join my court at Camelot?!

SOLDIER #1: But then of course a-- African swallows are non-migratory.

SOLDIER #2: Oh, yeah.

SOLDIER #1: So, they couldn't bring a coconut back anyway.

[clop clop clop]

SOLDIER #2: Wait a minute! Supposing two swallows carried it together?

SOLDIER #1: No, they'd have to have it on a line.

SOLDIER #2: Well, simple! They'd just use a strand of creeper!

SOLDIER #1: What, held under the dorsal guiding feathers?

SOLDIER #2: Well, why not?