2023-08-22 18:00:00
Sea turtles are renowned for their excellent sense of direction. They systematically return to lay eggs on the beaches where they were born. These marine migration experts can travel thousands of miles to feed, reproduce and return to the spawning beach. They cross entire oceans without difficulty, but how?
Researchers have always been intrigued by the migration of sea turtles. After several years of study, we finally have some explanations of the methods used by turtles to travel thousands of kilometers without ever getting lost.
The study relayed by IFL Science reveals that tetrapod vertebrates would use the Earth’s magnetic fields. They would also use what is called quantum biology. These are the phenomena of life that cannot be explained by classical mechanics.
Spontaneous Magnetic Alignment Helps Snapping Turtles Find Each Other
The researchers explain that snapping turtles can tell north from south when they travel thanks to spontaneous magnetic alignment (AMS). This phenomenon allows animals to orient their bodies according to magnetic fields. Initially, only a few species were thought to use AMS. However, this phenomenon is much more common in the animal kingdom.
As John Philips, a professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Virginia Tech, explains, spontaneous magnetic alignment has been seen in all animals, from cows to crayfish. It is not goal-directed, like compass orientation or migratory orientation. They [les animaux] essentially line up north and south ».
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Turtles visualize a kind of grid to orient themselves in their environment
Turtles thus have a sensory system with ” a quantum process that involves photoreceptors whose response to light depends on their alignment with the magnetic field “. John Philips has added some details to this phenomenon. In fact, compare it to what we perceive when we look away from a light source. We sometimes see a blur of complementary colors that are not real.
Photoreceptors therefore send back an image of something that we do not see in reality. ” If the same sort of thing happens with the magnetic field, then certain alignments in the magnetic field will perceive the light to be brighter or dimmer. “says John Philips. He then adds that this model is “ a kind of grid system that allows animals to organize spatial information ».
Sea turtles are therefore not equipped with an integrated GPS to locate themselves in the oceans. They do not see the exact route to follow to get from point A to point B. Instead, they visualize a grid that allows them to locate and orient themselves in the environment in which they find themselves.
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The more there are, the more magnetic fields disturb the orientation of sea turtles
Nevertheless, radio frequencies can disturb the earth’s magnetic fields and therefore the orientation of turtles. ” If you expose animals to very low level radio frequency signals, it knocks out the magnetic compass “, explains John Philips. All animals are affected, from mice to migrating birds to snapping turtles.
According to the professor, radio frequencies can mess up their magnetic compass, because they just don’t recognize the new pattern “. Turtles can therefore have difficulty finding their way around because of artificial magnetic fields. These are more and more widespread on the surface of the Earth.
Source : IFL Science
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