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Updated: May 1, 2026

Evaluation of Auditory Brainstem Response in Chicken Hatchlings
Published on: April 1, 2022
The magnetic compass of domestic chickens
Susanne Denzau1, Christine Nießner1, Lesley J Rogers2
1Fachbereich Biowissenschaften der Goethe-Universität Frankfurt; Frankfurt am Main, Germany.
Abstract:
In a recent paper, we showed that domestic chickens can be trained to search for a social stimulus in specific magnetic directions. Chickens can hardly fly and have only small home ranges, hence their having a functional magnetic compass may seem rather surprising. Yet considering the natural habitat of their ancestors and their lifestyle until recently, the advantages of a magnetic compass become evident.
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