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The Journal of Experimental Biology 206, 1773-1778 (2003)
doi: 10.1242/jeb.00365

Commentary

The role of visual landmarks in the avian familiar area map

Richard A. Holland

Biology Department, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT, UK

e-mail: bgyraho{at}leeds.ac.uk

Accepted 13 March 2003

The question of whether homing pigeons use visual landmarks for orientation from distant, familiar sites is an unresolved issue in the field of avian navigation. Where evidence has been found, the question still remains as to whether the landmarks are used independent of the map and compass mechanism for orientation that is so important to birds. Recent research has challenged the extent to which experiments that do not directly manipulate the visual sense can be used as evidence for compass-independent orientation. However, it is proposed that extending a new technique for research on vision in homing to include manipulation of the compasses used by birds might be able to resolve this issue. The effect of the structure of the visual sense of the homing pigeon on its use of visual landmarks is also considered.

Key words: vision, landmark, homing pigeon, spatial memory, navigation

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