Desert ants of the Cataglyphis nodus species use the Earth's magnetic field for spatial orientation, but rely on a different component of the field than other insects. The survey suggests that the ants also use a different mechanism for magnetoreception than most insects studied to date, including the famous monarch butterflies. The researchers suspect that magnetoreception in desert ants is based on a mechanism involving tiny particles of the iron oxide mineral magnetite or other magnetic particles.
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