Evolutionary aspects of orientation and migration in birds

Summary Evolutionary aspects of avian migratory orientation and navigation are reviewed. A theoretical approach to the evolution of complex (endogenously programmed) migratory behavior is presented using the comparative method of ordering a progression in existing behavioral characteristics from dispersal, to facultative migration, to obligate migration.     

A magnetic pulse leads to a temporary deflection in the orientation of migratory birds

Migratory Australian Silvereyes were treated with a strong magnetic pulse designed to alter the magnetization of the small magnetite particles that are found in birds' heads. Prior to the treatment, the birds preferred the northeasterly migratory direction. The pulse initially resulted in a 90° clockwise shift of orientation; however, within about a week, the birds seemed to return to their original headings. These findings, which seem to suggest an involvement of magnetite in migratory orientation, are in contrast with previous findings which indicated that it is a light-dependent process. They are discussed in view of the current concepts on magnetoreception and on the role of magnetic information in avian orientation.     

Short-distance homing in a small mammal: the role of exteroceptive cues and path integration

Summary When hoarding food under IR light, the golden hamster returns to its nest by path integration after an active outward journey, and it is capable of compensating the angular component of a passive outward journey independently of auditory, olfactory, tactile and geomagnetic cues. If, however, peripheral visual cues are available, they predominate over information which is gained during the active or passive outward journey. Further experiments show the limitations of homing by path integration, which is open to cumulative errors and therefore needs to be complemented by other categories of information.Acknowledgments. This research was supported by the Fonds national suisse de la recherche scientique, grants No. 3.349.0.74 and 3.753.0.80. We are very grateful to Dr J. Bovet, Dr W. Heiligenberg, Dr J. G. Mather and to an unknown referee for their critical comments and to Mr R. Schumacher for all his ingenious technical help.     

Magnetic inclination compass: A basis for the migratory orientation of birds in the Northern and Southern Hemisphere

We conducted orientation experiments with Silvereyes,Zosterops lateralis, Australian passerine migrants, to see whether birds living in the Southern Hemisphere in a magnetic field with an upward inclination orient in the same way as birds in the Northern Hemisphere that experience a downward inclination of the magnetic field. Tested indoors in the local geomagnetic field, the birds preferred southerly directions corresponding to their migratory direction in spring. In a magnetic field with a reversed vertical component, they reversed their directional tendencies. This shows that the magnetic compass of Silvereyes also functions as an inclination compass based on the inclination of the field lines instead of the polarity.     

The use of monthly indicators to forecast quarterly GDP in the short run: an application to the G7 countries

The delayed release of the National Account data for GDP is an impediment to the early understanding of the economic situation. In the short run, this information gap may be at least partially eliminated by bridge models (BM) which exploit the information content of timely updated monthly indicators. In this paper we examine the forecasting ability of BM for GDP growth in the G7 countries and compare their performance to that of univariate and multivariate statistical benchmark models. We run four alternative one‐quarter‐ahead forecasting experiments to assess BM performance in situations as close as possible to the actual forecasting activity. BM are estimated for GDP both for single countries (USA, Japan, Germany, France, UK, Italy and Canada), and area‐wide (G7, European Union, and Euro area). BM forecasting ability is always superior to that of benchmark models, provided that at least some monthly indicator data are available over the forecasting horizon. Copyright © 2007 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.