How pigeons find their way home: the answer is a magnetic compass in the liver
BY THE OPTIMIST DAILY EDITORIAL TEAM For decades, researchers looked for the seat of magnetoreception in all the obvious places: the eyes, the inner ear, the beak. A study just published in Science points somewhere none of them expected. The organ doing the magnetic navigation work in homing pigeons appears to be the liver. Iron accumulation with a purpose The cells involved are macrophages. Their usual job is to break down old red blood cells, accumulating iron as they go. Researchers at the Un
The science section covers breakthroughs in medicine, physics, biology, and technology. We surface discoveries that expand what humanity can do, from new treatments reaching clinical trials to engineering feats that seemed impossible a decade ago. Every link goes to the original publisher so you can read the full study or press release yourself.
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