Just why marine animals migrate such vast distances to return to their own birthplace, sometimes bypassing other suitable locations along the way, is not known. Scientists speculate that natal homing evolved because individuals that returned to their home areas to reproduce left more offspring than those that tried to reproduce elsewhere.

 

"For animals that require highly specific environmental conditions to reproduce, assessing the suitability of an unfamiliar area can be difficult and risky," Lohmann said. "In effect, these animals seem to have hit on a strategy that if a natal site was good enough for them, then it will be good enough for their offspring."

 

The study notes that the Earth's magnetic field changes slightly over time and thus probably only helps animals arrive in the general region of their birthplace. Once an animal is close to the target, other senses, such as vision or smell, may be used to pinpoint specific reproductive sites. Salmon, for example, are known to use smell to locate spawning grounds once they have drawn near.

 

Lohmann said one problem making it difficult to test the new theory is the low survival rate of sea turtles. Only one out of about 4,000 baby sea turtles survives to adulthood and returns to its natal site to breed. A similarly small percentage of baby fish survive.

 

Lohmann also notes that if the theory is correct, it could lead to new ways of helping save sea turtles and salmon. "Ideally, it might be possible to steer turtles to protected areas where we would like them to nest," Lohmann said, noting the animals' endangered status. "It might also be possible to use magnetic imprinting to help re-establish salmon populations in rivers where the original population has been wiped out."