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Cows automatically point to the north

Cows automatically point to the north because they have their own in-built
compasses aligning them with the Earth's magnetic field, scientists have
discovered.


   By Tom Peterkin
   Last Updated: 9:24AM BST 26 Aug 2008
   Cows pointing north
   The researchers studied cows visible on Google Earth Photo: GETTY

   Researchers discovered that cattle have a good sense of direction and
   tend to point in a northerly direction.

   It has long been observed that cows appear to have a talent for
   weather forecasting and are able to predict when rain is on the way,
   but until now their navigational abilities have been largely ignored.

   Their innate ability to find north is believed to be a relic from the
   days when their wild ancestors needed an accurate sense of direction
   to migrate across the plains of Africa, Asia and Europe.

   Dr Sabine Begall and colleagues from the University of Duisburg-Essen
   looked at thousands of images of cattle on Google Earth in Britain,
   Ireland, India and the USA. They also studied 3,000 deer in the Czech
   Republic. The deer tended to face north when resting or grazing.

   Although, in many cases, the images were not clear enough to determine
   which way the cattle were facing they were aligned on a north/south
   axis.

   The scientists concluded that they were behaving in the same way as
   the deer.

   Huge variations in the wind direction and sunlight in the areas where
   the beasts were found meant that the scientists were able to rule out
   those factors as being responsible for the direction they were facing.

   "We conclude that the magnetic field is the only common and most
   likely factor responsible for the observed alignment," the scientists
   wrote in an article published in the Proceedings of the National
   Academy of Sciences journal.

   It is already known that many species use the Earth's magnetic field
   to navigate across the planet. Examples include migratory turtles,
   salmon, termites and birds.

   Animals are thought to use their own internal magnets made of crystals
   of magnetite. Homing pigeons have a small amount of the substance on
   their beaks, which gives them their uncannily accurate powers of
   navigation.

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   http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/2623809/Cows-p
   oint-north-thanks-to-in-built-compasses.html
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   http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/newstopics/howaboutthat/2623809/Cows-p
   oint-north-thanks-to-in-built-compasses.html