Spiecker, Lisa, Laurien, Malien, Dammann, Wiebke, Franke, Andrea, Clemmesen, Catriona and Gerlach, Gabriele (2022) Juvenile Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus) use a time-compensated sun compass for orientation. Journal of Experimental Biology, 225 (18). A jeb244607. DOI 10.1242/jeb.244607.

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Abstract

Atlantic herring (Clupea harengus), an ecologically and economically important species in the northern hemisphere, shows pronounced seasonal migratory behaviour. To follow distinctive migration patterns over hundreds of kilometers between feeding, overwintering and spawning grounds, they are probably guided by orientation mechanisms. We tested whether juvenile spring-spawning Atlantic herring, caught in the western Baltic, use a sun compass for orientation just before they start leaving their hatching area. Fish were randomly divided into two groups, one of them clock-shifted 6 h backwards, to investigate whether they shift their orientation direction accordingly. Individual fish were placed in a circular bowl and their orientation was tested multiple times with the sun as a sole visual orientational cue. Our results show for the first time that juvenile Atlantic herring use a time-compensated sun compass during their migration. Their swimming direction was impaired, but still present, even when the sky was very cloudy, indicating additional orientation capabilities.

Document Type:	Article
Keywords:	Atlantic herring; Migration; Sun compass orientation; Orientation behaviour
Research affiliation:	OceanRep > GEOMAR > FB3 Marine Ecology > FB3-EV Marine Evolutionary Ecology
Main POF Topic:	PT6: Marine Life
Refereed:	Yes
Open Access Journal?:	No
Publisher:	The Company of Biologists
Date Deposited:	10 Oct 2022 11:57
Last Modified:	07 Feb 2024 15:30
URI:	https://oceanrep.geomar.de/id/eprint/57099

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