Study
Regional magnetic fields as navigational markers for sea turtles
Lohmann, Kenneth J.; Cain, Shaun D.; Dodge, Sarah A.; Lohmann, Catherine M. F.
Science, 2001
Hatchling loggerhead turtles were tethered in a water arena surrounded by coils reproducing the magnetic field found at specific locations along their migratory route. The direction each turtle swam was recorded.
- Studied in
- Caretta caretta
- Sample size
- hatchling loggerhead turtles tested in a magnetic coil system
Turtles swam in directions appropriate to the location whose magnetic signature they were exposed to, orienting differently for fields matching different points on the route — without ever having been there.
What it means
The authors' reading, and ours. Where they differ, that difference is the point.
How the authors put it
Hatchling turtles inherit responses to regional magnetic signatures, functioning as an inherited navigational map.
How NatureHQ reads it
This is the strongest single result in the map-versus-compass debate, and the reason it is persuasive is that the animals were naive: a hatchling that has never migrated cannot have learned these responses. It shows position-appropriate orientation rather than a map in any richer sense, and the magnitude of the field changes used is larger than a turtle would meet in a short journey.
- Tethered hatchlings in a tank, which constrains the behaviour available.
- Shows appropriate orientation, not that the animal knows where it is.
- Field manipulations are coarse relative to natural gradients.
What this study is used for on NatureHQ
One study can inform several subjects. Here is everywhere this one is cited.
Published by: American Association for the Advancement of SciencePublished in Science or Science Advances (AAAS).
doi.org/10.1126/science.1064557
This reference was resolved automatically against Crossref and OpenAlex on 2026-08-11.
NatureHQ summarises research in its own words and does not reproduce published text. Reviewed 2026-08-09.