Abstract
Animals can detect different parameters of the geomagnetic field by two principal independent magnetoreception mechanisms: (1) a light-dependent process detecting the axial course and the inclination angle of the geomagnetic field lines, providing the animals with magnetic compass information (inclination compass), and (2) a magnetite-mediated process, providing magnetic map information (map sense). In vertebrates like birds and newts, light-dependent magnetic compass orientation depends on both wavelength and intensity of light, and experimental evidence suggests that magnetic compass information is perceived by magneto-sensitive photoreceptors, possibly containing cryptochromes, in the retina or the pineal.
| Original language | English |
|---|---|
| Title of host publication | Photobiology – The Science of Light and Life |
| Editors | Lars Olof Björn |
| Publisher | Springer |
| Pages | 465-478 |
| ISBN (Print) | 978-0-387-72654-0 |
| DOIs | |
| Publication status | Published - 2007 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Subject classification (UKÄ)
- Biological Sciences
- Zoology