ArticleeLife2020
Magnetic alignment enhances homing efficiency of hunting dogs.
Article in eLife, 2020. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 7 papers.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
7 citing papers in PubMed.
- The Effect of High-Voltage Power Lines on Magnetic Orientation of Domestic Dogs.Animals : an open access journal from MDPI · 2025Article
- Recent Studies on the Effects of Static Magnetic Fields (SMF) on Reproductive Function.Current issues in molecular biology · 2025Review
- Biophysical mechanism of animal magnetoreception, orientation and navigation.Scientific reports · 2024Review
- A GPS assisted translocation experiment to study the homing behavior of red deer.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- The importance of time of day for magnetic body alignment in songbirds.Journal of comparative physiology. A, Neuroethology, sensory, neural, and behavioral physiology · 2022Article
- Short-range homing in camels: displacement experiments.Biology open · 2021Article
- Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
10 authors.
Funding
Abstract
Despite anecdotal reports of the astonishing homing abilities in dogs, their homing strategies are not fully understood. We equipped 27 hunting dogs with GPS collars and action cams, let them freely roam in forested areas, and analyzed components of homing in over 600 trials. When returning to the owner (homewards), dogs either followed their outbound track ('tracking') or used a novel route ('scouting'). The inbound track during scouting started mostly with a short (about 20 m) run along the north-south geomagnetic axis, irrespective of the actual direction homewards. Performing such a 'compass run' significantly increased homing efficiency. We propose that this run is instrumental for bringing the mental map into register with the magnetic compass and to establish the heading of the animal.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.