Abstract
Previous releases of homing pigeons in the area of the magnetic anomaly are checked with the magnetic data from a new geomagnetic map, and with the K values of the Observatory of Fürstenfeldbruck. The vanishing bearings of the pigeons released show a slight but consistent deviation from the homeward direction towards that part of the magnetic diagram which corresponds to the difference in total magnetic intensity between the place of release and the loft, △F. A slight, but consistent, influence of the two independent variables (K values and △F) on the initial orientation of the homing pigeons involved is reported. However, no significant influence of the size of the magnetic gradient at the place of release could be shown.
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© 1982 Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg
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Frei, U. (1982). Homing Pigeons’ Behaviour in the Irregular Magnetic Field of Western Switzerland. In: Papi, F., Wallraff, H.G. (eds) Avian Navigation. Proceedings in Life Sciences. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-68616-0_13
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-68616-0_13
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