Spatial orientation of foraging corvids consistent with spontaneous magnetic alignment responses observed in a variety of free-roaming vertebrates

Abstract

Abstract. Spontaneous magnetic alignment, in which an animal or group of animals, aligns its body axis in a fixed orientation relative to the geomagnetic field has been observed across a variety of vertebrates. Although a seemingly ubiquitous spatial behaviour, the adaptive significance and sensory mechanisms underlying spontaneous magnetic alignment remain unclear. Here we report another example of spontaneous alignment during feeding behaviour from five corvid species, a well-known and geographically widespread avian taxon. Consistent with previous observational studies of magnetic alignment in free-roaming vertebrates, first- and second-order analyses show that corvids exhibit robust axial alignment corresponding with the north-south magnetic axis. In contrast, when the data is pooled relative to the sun's azimuth, the first-order analysis is indistinguishable from random and the second-order statistics, although statistically significant, are a much weaker predictor of axial orientation compared to the distribution pooled relative to the magnetic field. The magnetic alignment behaviour exhibited by foraging crows reported here is compatible with previous hypotheses proposing that spontaneous magnetic alignment may help to coordinate and structure spatial behaviours in free-living organisms. Clearly, an experimental approach in future studies is needed to help shed light on the functional significance and biophysical mechanisms mediating spontaneous magnetic alignment. These data provide support for spontaneous magnetic alignment in free-roaming corvids, a widespread taxon with exceptional cognitive abilities that may offer unique advantages for future laboratory and field-based studies of magnetoreception.