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title: "Manx Shearwaters get home by sun compass"
---

# Manx Shearwaters get home by sun compass

Oliver Padget ([Department of Zoology](https://www.zoo.ox.ac.uk/), University of Oxford, UK) and colleagues have written in the journal [*Current Biology*](https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/current-biology) on compass orientation in Manx Shearwaters *Puffinus puffinus*.

 The paper’s summary follows:

 “Compass orientation is central to the control [of animal movement](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/movement-of-animals) from the scale of local food-caching movements around a familiar area in parids [[1](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982217315877#bib1)] and corvids [[2, 3](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982217315877#bib2)] to the first autumn vector navigation of songbirds embarking on long-distance migration [[4–6](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982217315877#bib4)]. In the study of diurnal birds, where the homing pigeon, *[Columba](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/agricultural-and-biological-sciences/columba-genus) livia*, has been the main model, a time-compensated sun compass [[7](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982217315877#bib7)] is central to the two-step map-and-compass process of navigation from unfamiliar places, as well as guiding movement via a representation of familiar area landmarks [[8–12](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982217315877#bib8)]. However, its use by an actively navigating wild bird is yet to be shown. By phase shifting an animal’s [endogenous](https://www.sciencedirect.com/topics/neuroscience/endogeny) clock, known as clock-shifting [[13–15](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982217315877#bib13)], sun-compass use can be demonstrated when the animal incorrectly consults the sun’s azimuthal position while homing after experimental displacement [[15–17](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982217315877#bib15)]. By applying clock-shift techniques at the nest of a wild bird during natural incubation, we show here that an oceanic navigator—the Manx shearwater, *Puffinus puffinus*—incorporates information from a time-compensated sun compass during homeward guidance to the breeding colony after displacement. Consistently with homing pigeons navigating within their familiar area [[8, 9, 11, 18](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982217315877#bib8)], we find that the effect of clock shift, while statistically robust, is partial in nature, possibly indicating the incorporation of guidance from landmarks into movement decisions.”

 ![](https://acap.aq/images/stories/acap/Birds/Shearwaters/Shearwaters/Manx shearwater Nathan Fletcher s.jpg)

 Manx Shearwater, photograph by Nathan Fletcher

 **Reference:**

 Padget, O., Bond, S.L., Kavelaars, M.M., van Loon, E., Bolton, M., Fayet, A.L., Syposz, M., Roberts, S. & Guilford, T. 2018. In situ clock shift reveals that the sun compass contributes to orientation in a pelagic seabird. [*Current Biology* doi.org/10.1016/j.cub.2017.11.062](https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0960982217315877#!).

 *John Cooper, ACAP Information Officer, 31 January 2018*