Migratory birds have better memory

2003/06/01 Elhuyar Zientzia Iturria: Elhuyar aldizkaria

• Zoologia

The birds that migrate have better memory than those that remain in a fixed place. The birds that travel from Europe to Africa in winter remember a year their place of nidification, while the rest only do so for two weeks.

To reach this conclusion, German scientists have conducted experiments with two species of birds, the Chinese headstock and the Chinese forest. Scientists have prepared false nests to test if birds separate them. After analyzing more than a hundred cases, they have shown that the memory of migrants is better.

In addition, ornithologists have conducted anatomical analysis of birds and have observed that migrants have more hippocampus. The hippocampus is a part of the brain related to space capacity. Scientists believe that thanks to this, birds can take references that remind them of the way back.