Magnetic Alignment in Carps: Evidence from the Czech Christmas Fish Market

Overview

Journal PLoS One

Specialties General Medicine
Science

Date 2012 Dec 11

PMID 23227241

Citations 12

Authors

Vlastimil Hart

Tomas Kusta

Pavel Nemec

Veronika Blahova

Milos Jezek

Petra Novakova

Sabine Begall

Jaroslav cerveny

Vladimir Hanzal

Erich Pascal Malkemper

Kamil Stipek

Christiane Vole

Hynek Burda

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

While magnetoreception in birds has been studied intensively, the literature on magnetoreception in bony fish, and particularly in non-migratory fish, is quite scarce. We examined alignment of common carps (Cyprinus carpio) at traditional Christmas sale in the Czech Republic. The sample comprised measurements of the directional bearings in 14,537 individual fish, distributed among 80 large circular plastic tubs, at 25 localities in the Czech Republic, during 817 sampling sessions, on seven subsequent days in December 2011. We found that carps displayed a statistically highly significant spontaneous preference to align their bodies along the North-South axis. In the absence of any other common orientation cues which could explain this directional preference, we attribute the alignment of the fish to the geomagnetic field lines. It is apparent that the display of magnetic alignment is a simple experimental paradigm of great heuristic potential.

Citing Articles

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Swimming direction of the glass catfish is responsive to magnetic stimulation.

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Malewski S, Begall S, Schleich C, Antenucci C, Burda H PeerJ. 2018; 6:e5819.

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Apparent sixth sense in theropod evolution: The making of a Cretaceous weathervane.

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