Abstract

Overview

The ability to detect magnetic fields, known as magnetosensation, is a sensory modality utilized by many animals for navigation. Initially considered a myth since the 1800s, groundbreaking behavioral experiments in the 1960s and 1970s verified its existence.

Findings

This study critically evaluates several assertions related to magnetoreception:

• Magnetoreception's existence.
• The necessity of magnetite for magnetoreception.
• A conserved magnetic sense system in birds' upper beaks.
• The role of cryptochrome in magnetic sensing.
• MagR as a protein biocompass.
• The viability of the electromagnetic induction hypothesis.

Conclusion

By countering common myths and presenting new arguments, this manuscript encourages further debate, innovative ideas, and the design of precise experiments to deepen our understanding of magnetosensation.