Responses of bristle field sensilla inApis mellifica to geomagnetic and astrophysical fields

Abstract

The response of a bristle field sensillum inApis mellifica may be described as follows. 1. Distinct artificial magnetic fields (especially tilting of the static vector) influence the impulse frequency of the sensory cell. 2. At certain hours of the day characteristic changes of the impulse frequency occur. 3. Under predominantly natural magnetic field (MF) conditions there are significant correlations between the variation of selected MF components and impulse frequency (IMP). However, when a spatially oscillating MF-vector is applied, the IMP course does not always show a formal coincidence with MF variation. 4. Our hypothesis is that in this case the trigonometric constellation of sun (S) and moon (M) becomes the dominant guiding factor. 5. IMP frequency — with a given total azimuthal shift of the SM-system — may be calculated by the following equation using S and M azimuth and height data: $$IMP_{freq} = \pm (0.46 \cdot (\sin Az_S + \sin h_S ) + (sin Az_M + \sin h_M ))/\Delta t$$ Az=azimuth (in angular degrees),h=height (in angular degrees). 6. A quantization of the space in 90° steps and the preference of the north-south direction in this orientation system are evident. MF influences are discussed in relation to nuclear magnetic resonance; effects caused by the sun-moon constellation seem to be a gravitational modulation. A partial synthesis of both parameters is possible. Those results are discussed from a quantum mechanical point of view.