Built-in GPS for Bird Navigation
While it is interesting to talk about birds in this area , there are plenty of other avians to discuss. The Common (or Eurasian) Reed Warbler is something this child will never see. It likes to warble on reeds and nest in them. They breed in Europe and some of Asia, then migrate to parts of Africa for the winter. Some are year-round Africans. Bird migration is fascinating. It is known that they use Earth's magnetic field for navigation, but it is more than going in a particular direction. Eurasian Reed Warbler, Flickr / Ron Knight ( CC BY 2.0 ) The magnetic field provides a great deal of information, and their built-in Global Positioning System uses it. Migratory birds like the Common Reed Warbler can determine where they are, the direction they need to go, and how far. Researchers caught some and put them in "orientation cages" where they were effectively reprogrammed to believe they were in a different place. When they flew, they ignored visual cues. Even though the bi