Learned magnetic compass orientation by the Siberian hamster, Phodopus sungorus

Magnetic orientation in mammals has been demonstrated convincingly in only two genera of subterranean mole-rats (Spalax and Cryptomys sp.) by examining the directional placement of nests in radially symmetrical indoor arenas. Mole-rats show a spontaneous directional preference to place their nests to the south or southeast of magnetic north. Using a similar nest-building assay, we show that laboratoryraised Siberian hamsters also use directional information from the magnetic field to position their nests. In contrast to mole-rats, however, the directional preference for nest position shown by Siberian hamsters appears to be learned. Hamsters were housed in rectangular cages aligned along perpendicular axes before testing. When subsequently tested in a radially symmetric arena, the hamsters positioned their nests in a bimodal distribution that coincided with the magnetic direction of the long axis of the holding cages. We also present results from an earlier set of experiments in which hamsters showed consistent orientation only in the ambient magnetic field, and not in experimentally rotated magnetic fields. The conditions under which these earlier experiments were carried out suggest that holding conditions prior to testing and the presence of nonmagnetic cues may influence the expression of magnetic orientation in the Siberian hamster. Failure to consider these and other factors may help to explain why previous attempts to demonstrate magnetic orientation in a number of rodent species have failed or, when positive results have been obtained, have been difficult to replicate.