Magnetoreception-based Navigation Mechanism of Black-faced Spoonbill

摘要

Studying the birds’ natural ability of long-range migration hopefullyimproves the existing navigation technology. The ability of navigation usingthe geomagnetic field is known as magnetoreception. Recently, a theorybased on quantum mechanics reports that the geomagnetic field can affectsome molecular chemical reactions of birds and thereby change their flightdirections. This chemical magnetoreception process is called radical pair (RP)mechanism. This paper uses quantum spin theory to analyze themagnetoreception effect caused by the reaction of free radical pairs to thegeomagnetic field. A quantum spin model is established here to simulate thebird’s visual magnetic compass as a navigation tool to sense their orientationswith respect to the geomagnetic field. The established visual magneticcompass is then applied to verify the magnetoreception of Platalea minor,commonly known as black-faced spoonbill. By tracking the GPS signals ofan individual Platalea minor, the actual migration path is successfullyincorporated into the mathematical model to reconstruct the visual images ofthe geomagnetism on the retina of Platalea minor and to expound itsmagnetoreception navigation ability along the migratory route from TaijiangNational Park in Taiwan to the border area between North and South Korea.