(June 17, 2015) A
team of scientists and engineers at The University of Texas at Austin has
identified the first sensor of the Earth’s magnetic field in an animal, finding
in the brain of a tiny worm a big clue to a long-held mystery about how
animals’ internal compasses work.
Animals as diverse as migrating geese, sea turtles and
wolves are known to navigate using the Earth's magnetic field. But until now,
no one has pinpointed quite how they do it. The sensor, found in worms called
C. elegans, is a microscopic structure at the end of a neuron that other
animals probably share, given similarities in brain structure across species.
The sensor looks like a nano-scale TV antenna, and the worms use it to navigate
underground.
"Chances are that the same molecules will be used by
cuter animals like butterflies and birds," said Jon Pierce-Shimomura,
assistant professor of neuroscience in the College of Natural Sciences and
member of the research team. "This gives us a first foothold in
understanding magnetosensation in other animals."