Magnetoreception is a sense which allows an organism to detect the Earth's magnetic field. Animals with this sense include some arthropods, molluscs, and vertebrates (fish, amphibians, reptiles, birds, and mammals). The sense is mainly used for orientation and navigation, but it may help some animals to form regional maps.

Several mechanisms have been proposed that might underlie magnetic-field detection. Most recent research, however, has focused on three main ideas: electromagnetic induction, magnetite, and chemical magnetoreception. Electromagnetic induction

Lining up in chains, magnetite crystals formed the physical basis for magnetoreception, acting as compasses to align the bacteria swimming direction along the local magnetic field lines of the Earth, allowing the bacteria to move along a straight line, rather than tumbling chaotically, as they seek out nutrients to grow and multiply.

2008年3月1日 · But how animals sense magnetic fields remains a hotly contested topic. Whereas the physical basis of nearly all other senses has been determined, and a magnetoreception mechanism has been identified in bacteria, no one knows with certainty how any animal perceives magnetic fields.

2021年9月16日 · What is magnetoreception? The ability to perceive magnetic fields, or magnetoreception, is one of the most studied senses in recent years. Although research on human beings is still in its early stages, work in the animal world has demonstrated the existence of this sense in some living beings.

2017年10月23日 · We introduce and discuss 3 concepts that attempt to address this question: (1) a mechanically sensitive magnetite-based magnetoreceptor, (2) a light-sensitive chemical-based mechanism, and (3) electromagnetic induction within accessory structures.

2005年8月15日 · This article reviews the three main mechanisms that have been proposed to underlie magnetoreception (electromagnetic induction, chemical magnetoreception and biogenic magnetite) and evaluates...

The radical-pair mechanism, proposed for quantum magnetoreception in birds, takes place in cryptochrome molecules in cells in their retinas. (Chiswick Chap/CC BY-SA 4.0/Wikimedia Commons) Magnetite-based magnetoreception is a far more straightforward approach. Tiny crystals of iron-based compounds in an organism's cells are thought to react to ...

2015年12月5日 · Magnetoreception is the ability of certain organisms to detect magnetic fields in order to get a sense of direction or location. Many animals have shown the ability to use the Earth's magnetic field to orient themselves and gain information about their surroundings.

2017年6月27日 · This review contains, currently, the most extensive bibliography on the biological effects of hypomagnetic field. This includes both a review of known experimental results and the putative mechanisms of magnetoreception and their explanatory power with respect to the hypomagnetic field effects.