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Olfaction and homing in pigeons: Nerve-section experiments, critique, hypotheses

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Summary

At four sites in the cardinal directions from the home loft in about 180 km distance, 135 experimental pigeons (EPs) and 171 control pigeons (CPs) were released. The EPs had been made anosmic by bilateral olfactory nerve section. All birds were completely inexperienced in homing.

Homeward orientation was clearly established in the CPs of which 19% returned to the loft. The performances of the EPs were significantly worse in (a) initial orientation, (b) vanishing intervals, (c) distribution of recoveries, and (d) homing success (none of them homed).

The EPs still showed the loft-specific preferred compass direction (PCD).

The recoveries of the EPs are much more widely scattered in direction than those of the rather well homeward oriented CPs, even if the distances from the release site are the same in both groups. It is concluded that the navigational capability rather than the motivation to fly or to return home is affected by olfactory deprivation. It is further concluded that homing of pigeons depends on olfactory stimuli perceived at the remote sites even at distances as large as 180km.

In the data of the anosmic pigeons a non-olfactory component of homeward orientation persists which is much more pronounced on the W-E axis than on the N-S axis. This component alone appears to be insufficient for a return to the loft.

Earlier results and conclusions that gave rise to some controversy are critically examined.

The present as well as earlier findings are discussed with respect to two alternative hypotheses of olfactory navigation, the “mosaic hypothesis” (favoured by Papi) and the “gradient hypothesis” (favoured by the author).

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Abbreviations

EP :

experimental pigeon(s)

CP :

control pigeon(s)

CLCP :

cueless transported control pigeon(s) (see p. 210)

PCD :

preferred compass direction

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Max-Planck-Institut für Verhaltensphysiologie, D-8131, Seewiesen, Germany

    Hans G. Wallraff

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  1. Hans G. Wallraff
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I gratefully acknowledge the possibility to maintain our pigeon loft in a building that belongs to the Zoological Institute (Prof. M. Lindauer) of the University of Würzburg. I thank B. and K. Brendle, E. Thiele, and K. Wielander for the releasing of pigeons and for other technical assistance.

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Wallraff, H.G. Olfaction and homing in pigeons: Nerve-section experiments, critique, hypotheses. J. Comp. Physiol. 139, 209–224 (1980). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00657083

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