title: A new type of radical-pair-based model for magnetoreception.
abstract: Certain migratory birds can sense the Earth's magnetic field. The nature of this process is not yet properly understood. Here we offer a simple explanation according to which birds literally see the local magnetic field through the impact of a physical rather than a chemical signature of the radical pair: a transient, long-lived electric dipole moment. Based on this premise, our picture can explain recent surprising experimental data indicating long lifetimes for the radical pair. Moreover, there is a clear evolutionary path toward this field-sensing mechanism: it is an enhancement of a weak effect that may be present in many species.
authors.affiliation: Department of Physics and Astronomy, University College London, London, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: A Marshall
authors.initials: AM
authors.lastname: Stoneham
authors.forename: Erik M
authors.initials: EM
authors.lastname: Gauger
authors.forename: Kyriakos
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Porfyrakis
authors.forename: Simon C
authors.initials: SC
authors.lastname: Benjamin
authors.forename: Brendon W
authors.initials: BW
authors.lastname: Lovett
mesh_terms: D025041:Animal Migration / Q000502:physiology / Q000528:radiation effects; D005609:Free Radicals / Q000378:metabolism; D060526:Magnetic Fields; D008954:Models, Biological; D011846:Radio Waves; D013997:Time Factors
chemical_list: D005609:Free Radicals