Interactions of the polarization and the sun compass in path integration of desert ants

Journal of Comparative Physiology. A, Neuroethology, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology
Fleur Lebhardt, Bernhard Ronacher

Abstract

Desert ants, Cataglyphis fortis, perform large-scale foraging trips in their featureless habitat using path integration as their main navigation tool. To determine their walking direction they use primarily celestial cues, the sky's polarization pattern and the sun position. To examine the relative importance of these two celestial cues, we performed cue conflict experiments. We manipulated the polarization pattern experienced by the ants during their outbound foraging excursions, reducing it to a single electric field (e-)vector direction with a linear polarization filter. The simultaneous view of the sun created situations in which the directional information of the sun and the polarization compass disagreed. The heading directions of the homebound runs recorded on a test field with full view of the natural sky demonstrate that none of both compasses completely dominated over the other. Rather the ants seemed to compute an intermediate homing direction to which both compass systems contributed roughly equally. Direct sunlight and polarized light are detected in different regions of the ant's compound eye, suggesting two separate pathways for obtaining directional information. In the experimental paradigm applied here, these t...Continue Reading

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Citations

Jul 27, 2014·Journal of Comparative Physiology. A, Neuroethology, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology·Fleur Lebhardt, Bernhard Ronacher
Feb 11, 2015·Journal of Comparative Physiology. A, Neuroethology, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology·Ken Cheng, Cody A Freas
Jun 5, 2016·Journal of Comparative Physiology. A, Neuroethology, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology·Rüdiger WehnerKen Cheng
Sep 8, 2017·Royal Society Open Science·Cody A FreasKen Cheng
May 24, 2017·Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society of London. Series B, Biological Sciences·Kathryn D FellerNicholas W Roberts
Jul 19, 2019·PLoS Computational Biology·Evripidis GkaniasBarbara Webb
Apr 28, 2020·The Journal of Comparative Neurology·Jens HabensteinWolfgang Rössler
Aug 20, 2019·Journal of Comparative Physiology. A, Neuroethology, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology·Cody A FreasMarcia L Spetch
Oct 12, 2018·PloS One·Harald WolfSarah E Pfeffer
Feb 8, 2019·The Journal of Experimental Biology·Timothy L WarrenMichael H Dickinson
Apr 24, 2020·Animal Cognition·Cornelia BuehlmannPaul Graham
May 1, 2018·Current Biology : CB·Pauline Nikola FleischmannWolfgang Rössler
Sep 4, 2018·Current Biology : CB·Ysabel Milton GiraldoMichael H Dickinson
Mar 8, 2021·Journal of Comparative Physiology. A, Neuroethology, Sensory, Neural, and Behavioral Physiology·Cody A Freas, Marcia L Spetch
Mar 18, 2021·Optics Express·Zhiguo FanDou Hua
Sep 23, 2021·Proceedings. Biological Sciences·Richard MassyKarl R Wotton

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