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Prof. Dr. Anton J.M. Loonen
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Welcome. This is the eighth blog post on the website of the Prof. Dr. Anton J.M. Loonen Foundation. In 2024, I published an article on the mechanism of migration in vertebrates. Although much is known about bird migration, it is remarkable that very little is known about how this is regulated in the brains of birds.
In birds, the brain structure differs from that of mammals. This primarily concerns the forebrain, which in mammals has an outer layer of cerebral cortex. This layer is absent in birds, but its function is fulfilled by other structures. Certain functions are highly developed in birds.
Some bird species (crows, ravens, jackdaws) are highly intelligent; their vision and sense of balance are highly developed, and some birds also use the Earth’s magnetic field to navigate. There is evidence that humans are also capable of perceiving the Earth’s magnetic field, but the manner in which this occurs and its significance are far from clear. As is the case with other animal species (lamprey, salmon, whale), migratory birds generally return to their birthplace to breed.
This led me to wonder whether, in humans too, the coordinates of the birthplace might be stored in the memory.
Nowadays, however, people are no longer particularly settled, and circumstances often force them to emigrate.
Does this change in the Earth’s magnetic field have any bearing on their behaviour and well-being? It might be interesting to investigate the neurobiological principle that regulates migratory birds’ return to their birthplace, and then to examine whether this also plays a role in humans.
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