Pigeons smell the air to find their way

A recent study by a German science shows that pigeons rely on their ability to smell air to find their way to their whereabouts.

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According to Nature World News, based on air conditions such as odor or wind power, pigeons will form a separate map in the brain, adjusting the flight path to find their way home.

During the study, Hans Wallraff of the Max Planck Bird Research Institute at Seewiesen, collected air samples in nearly 100 different areas within a 200km radius from a pigeon barn in southern Germany.

Based on the smell in the air, the dove will guide the flight path and find its way back to the place.(Artwork: chorleynats.org.uk)

By analyzing air samples, Wallraff found volatile organic compounds and smells in the air with a certain ratio. The change in the ratio of this compound will lead to a change in the perception of the pigeon's smell and the basis for specific flight directions.

To test the hypothesis, Wallraff experimented with pigeons that were only aware of the smell and wind around the place. However, these birds are able to find their way back to their homes by using air-related information during flight.

The pigeons use these tools to select volatile compounds in the air that are capable of navigating the route, combined with other different changes based on the wind direction to find their way home.

According to research results, the smell in the air plays an important role in determining the flight path of pigeons, which is also one of the extremely useful ways to help this bird find its way back to the place from miles away.

Previous studies have shown that pigeons unable to perceive odors will have difficulty in determining flight direction and may be disoriented.