Sensory Mechanisms for Animal Orientation — Can Any New Ones be Discovered?

Abstract

Several new sensory mechanisms usable for animal orientation have recently been discovered. Homing pigeons can detect polarized light, ultraviolet light, and atmospheric infrasounds (0.1→ 10 Hz), Each of these sensory mechanisms had been tested previously without success or had been rejected as impossible. This paper presents an analysis of why earlier tests were unsuccessful and looks at why more recent tests succeeded.