Broken Biological Clocks: Why Do Birds Lose Their Way in Flight?

Arduous Journeys and Confused Biological Rhythms

Do you think jet lag is a tax paid only by humans when crossing vast distances across time zones? The surprise is that the avian world suffers from the exact same affliction. When seabirds set off on rapid migration journeys eastward or westward, they face a hidden problem regarding their internal biological clocks, which become completely disrupted and lose their ability to synchronize with the timing of the new environment.

How Do Birds Navigate Their Direction in the Sky?

Migratory birds rely on complex mechanisms to determine their routes, most notably using the position of the sun in the sky as a guide. For this solar compass to work accurately, a bird must possess a precise perception of time, as the sun’s position varies according to the hours of the day. When birds cover massive distances east or west in a matter of hours, their bodies arrive at the new location while their biological clocks still retain the time of their departure point.

When Internal Timing Fails to Keep Pace With the Sun

This sudden time difference creates utter chaos in the bird’s perception. When it looks at the sun to determine its direction, its body believes it is a different time of day. As a result, it interprets the sun’s angle completely incorrectly, which drives it to deviate from its correct path. The latest tracking technologies via Global Positioning Systems (GPS) have revealed this astonishing truth, illustrating how this temporary time mismatch leads birds to lose their way and stray from the path.

New Challenges Added to Survival Journeys

These discoveries shed light on a new layer of complexity in the lives of migratory birds, which already face massive environmental dangers. Understanding this mechanism not only explains strange bird behaviors during long journeys, but it also gives us deeper insights into how sensitive living organisms are to their internal rhythms, and how a simple change in timing can alter the fate of an entire journey across seas and oceans.

By: Hany Sallam

Source: sciencenews.org

Published by Hany Sallam

Hany Sallam, Founder and Editor-in-Chief of Scientific Magazine Ahram
An independent Arabic science magazine operating since 2008, dedicated to simplifying science, technology, space, natural phenomena and scientific stories for Arabic readers. The magazine includes sections such as “Zodiac Group” and “Stories and Tales”, alongside science topics that combine knowledge with a spirit of discovery. It operates independently and is not affiliated with Al-Ahram Press Foundation or any governmental body.