Biology (Mader), 10th Edition

Chapter 43: Behavioral Ecology

Bird Radar

Objective: Discuss the research being conducted on how migratory birds are able to navigate.

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1.

What is thought to be a principle reason why birds migrate at night?
A)To use the daylight hours to procure food.
B)To avoid predators.
C)The air is colder and thinner so it is easier to fly at night.
D)There is less danger of mixed signals with no sunlight available.
2.

What is the term Cluster N referring to?
A)A galaxy of stars that have just recently been discovered to aid in navigation.
B)A nerve network found in the wings of migrating birds.
C)A brain region that can process magnetic fields and visual cues and turn it into an internal compass.
D)A deposit of iron found in the nose of birds, fish and many mammals.
3.

Which of the following was not a part of the research that was conducted to make the determination about Cluster N function?
A)Migrating birds and non-migrating birds were placed in identical environments.
B)During the day, both migrating and non-migrating birds responded similarly.
C)At night the migrating birds made attempts to orient themselves toward a Southern flight.
D)Both migrating and non-migrating birds showed similar activation in Cluster N at night.
4.

What was the critical finding of this research?
A)The dependency on a birds ability to actually see at night using this Cluster N region.
B)Migration is independent of light cues.
C)Navigation is too complex to research.
D)The birds that were non-migrating actually had the potential to use the same magnetic and visual cues, they just don’t.
5.

The current hypothesis around the value of night vision cues is that:
A)they are not critical to navigation.
B)they are only used when magnetic cues can’t be picked up by the birds in flight.
C)it activates a molecule called chryptochrome that excited nerves and converts this into a visual image.
D)they help to encourage birds to flock which assists in determining flight paths.
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