Dancing turtles show how animals use magnetic field as a map

Paris: Dancing turtles have proved for the first time that some animals use Earth s magnetic field to create a personal map of their favourite spots,...

Paris: Dancing turtles have proved for the first time that some animals use Earth's magnetic field to create a personal map of their favourite spots, scientists said Wednesday.

Some animals that migrate across the globe -- such as birds, salmon, lobsters and sea turtles -- are known to navigate using the magnetic field lines that stretch from Earth's north to south pole.

Scientists knew the animals used this magnetic information as a compass to establish where they were. Now they increasingly believe the turtles are also able to plot a magnetic map featuring important places such as nesting or feeding spots.

This would require the migratory animals to "learn the magnetic coordinates of the destination," according to a study in the journal Nature led by Kayla Goforth of the University of North Carolina.

The study said the research provides the first "direct evidence that an animal can learn and remember the natural magnetic signature of a geographical area".