Pigeons Are GPS Drones

Kurzgesagt – In a Nutshell · Beginner ·🤖 AI Agents & Automation ·2mo ago

Key Takeaways

Explains how pigeons use natural navigation methods to pinpoint their location and navigate home

Full Transcript

This is the world's oldest GPS drone. Pigeons can pinpoint their location hundreds of kilometers from their roost and navigate home autonomously. Humans selectively bred them to supercharge this natural homing ability until they functioned as a wireless communication network. They announced the winner of the Olympic Games and carried life-saving messages in war zones. But how do they do it? [music] Pigeons build up a map of their environment from sights and especially smells. They begin to learn wind-borne odors around their lofts as checks, so even if they're blown off course, they can still sniff their way home. Cross-checking the sun's position with their internal clock gives them an onboard compass. But that's not their only trick. As a pigeon travels through Earth's magnetic field, the motion induces electric currents in fluid-filled loops in their inner ears. Proteins sensitive enough to detect the signals can give them coordinates and directional cues similar to how sharks sense their prey. Though we slowly replaced pigeons with wires, they didn't disappear. The birds cleaning up crumbs in cities today are descendants of a living network whose story is inseparable from our own.

Original Description

Pigeons can pinpoint their location hundreds of kilometers from their roosts and navigate home autonomously, only using smell, the sun, and even Earth’s magnetic field. #kurzgesagt #inanutshell #kurzgesagt_inanutshell #learnwithshorts #science #birds #biology Sources & further reading: https://sites.google.com/view/kgs-tiktok-sources Follow us for more sciencey content! 🦆 OUR CHANNELS ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ German: https://kgs.link/youtubeDE Spanish: https://kgs.link/youtubeES French: https://kgs.link/youtubeFR Portuguese: https://kgs.link/youtubePT Arabic: https://kgs.link/youtubeAR Hindi: https://kgs.link/youtubeHI Japanese: https://kgs.link/youtubeJA Korean: https://kgs.link/youtubeKO HOW CAN YOU SUPPORT US? ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ This is how we make our living and it would be a pleasure if you support us! Get Products designed with ❤ https://shop.kgs.link/shorts Become a Part of kurzgesagt by joining the Patreon Bird Army 🐧 https://kgs.link/patreon DISCUSSIONS & SOCIAL MEDIA ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ Instagram: https://kgs.link/instagram TikTok: https://kgs.link/tiktok Reddit: https://kgs.link/reddit Discord: https://kgs.link/discord Twitter: https://kgs.link/twitter Bluesky: https://kgs.link/bluesky Facebook: https://kgs.link/facebook Newsletter: https://kgs.link/newsletter OUR VOICE ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ The Kurzgesagt voice is from Steve Taylor: https://kgs.link/youtube-voice OUR MUSIC ♬♪ ▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀▀ 700+ minutes of Kurzgesagt Soundtracks by Epic Mountain: Spotify: https://kgs.link/music-spotify Soundcloud: https://kgs.link/music-soundcloud Bandcamp: https://kgs.link/music-bandcamp Youtube: https://kgs.link/music-youtube Facebook: https://kgs.link/music-facebook
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