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Pigeon navigation finding called off-course

Biological ‘sensor’ in beaks may instead be immune system cells

By Susan Milius

- More than 2 years ago

Scientists may have been going in the wrong direction to find bird beaks’ built-in navigation sensors, says a provocative new study.

INSIDE JOB The head of a pigeon remains a place of mystery, as a new study challenges the prevailing idea of just where in the upper beak cells can sense Earth’s magnetic field.