For generations, animals of all kinds have baffled scientists with their ability to navigate and migrate, never losing their way even when flying over vast plains or swimming through the deep dark sea. While we humans need to rely on the sun and stars (and more recently, our phones’ GPS), the animal kingdom has a better solution. It’s called magnetoreception, and it allows them to use the earth’s magnetic field to get where they need to go! Though it may sound like science fiction, scientists have proven that animals can use magnetism to find their way. When robins were kept in a cage with no other signs or waypoints, researchers used a helmholtz coil to change the magnetic field. Sure enough, the birds’ sense of direction was disrupted. This even happens in the wild, too: deer and cattle use magnetoreception for direction when they graze, but this sense is disrupted when they’re close to high-voltage powerlines!

Where Does It Come From?

Despite research demonstrating the presence of this supernatural sense, scientists are puzzled as to the mechanism that allows animals to use it. Some suggest that Cryptochrome, a light-sensitive pigment, allows birds to “see” the magnetic field overtop of their normal vision, like Tony Stark’s display in the IronMan suit. Other scientists claim that Magnetite, a type of iron found in the body, is sensitive to the magnetic field, while others attest that it must be both.

Can We Use It, Too?

Interestingly enough, some studies have suggested that humans could use magnetoreception too. Researchers have found that cryptochrome, the pigment that some believe allows birds to see the earth’s magnetic field, is also present in the human eye. But unfortunately, the presence of cryptochrome is only a small piece in this super power puzzle. Birds and countless other magnetically-sensible animals can only use the pigment because of numerous sensors that are not present in humans. But there might be more to us humans than meets the eye: some literature suggests that humans might have a subconscious ability to detect magnetic fields. Despite their differences, most researchers agree on one thing: magnetoreception is difficult to understand and even harder to study. While most senses are linked to specific body parts, like eyes for sight and ears for hearing, a sense of magnetism could be found anywhere in the body, or in the opinion of some, nowhere at all. If this proves to be true, humans might need to leave magnetoreception to the world of sci-fi after all.