Wolfgang Wiltschko

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Roswitha and Wolfgang Wiltschko, June 2008

Wolfgang Wiltschko (born August 21, 1938 in Kienberg , Bohemian Forest ) is a German zoologist and behavioral scientist specializing in ornithology . At the beginning of the 1960s at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main, he developed an apparatus with which animals can be exposed to a static, artificial magnetic field that is variable in terms of north-south orientation. As the first researcher, he succeeded in proving experimentally that birds can orientate themselves on the earth's magnetic field , i.e. have a magnetic sense ( magnetic compass ). He is therefore considered "one of the pioneers in the field of bird orientation". Wiltschko has also been researching the physiological and neurobiological basis of the magnetic sense in birds for several years .

Career

From 1959 to 1967 Wolfgang Wiltschko studied zoology, botany and chemistry at the Johann Wolfgang Goethe University in Frankfurt am Main. In 1967 he was in Frankfurt doctorate , because of its experimental thesis about the influence of static magnetic fields on the tensile orientation of Robin (Erithacus rubecula) at Friedrich Wilhelm Merkel . From 1967 to 1973 Witschko worked as a scientific assistant at the Zoological Institute of the University of Frankfurt am Main. In 1972 he completed his habilitation in the biology department of the Goethe University in Frankfurt on compass systems in the orientation of migratory birds .

In 1974 Wolfgang Wiltschko went to Cornell University in Ithaca as a research fellow with William T. Keeton . He then returned to Frankfurt am Main and was Professor of Zoology at Goethe University from 1975 until his retirement in 2003. Even after his retirement he continues his research work in Frankfurt and abroad, holds lectures and organizes excursions. On his 70th birthday, he was aptly recognized in the features section of the Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung as “a very rare biological veteran”.

Research priorities

Wolfgang Wiltschko next to an experimental set-up to prove the magnetic sense in chicks: The cable, with the help of which a magnetic field is generated, runs along the octagonal wooden strips in the foreground; on the right is the black-clad lounge for the test animals on a turntable.

1965–1972: Wolfgang Wiltschko succeeded in first demonstrating the magnetic sense - in robins - and then in other migratory bird species. Since 1972 he has worked closely with his wife Roswitha Wiltschko on all research projects. At first his findings were received with skepticism, because they could not be reproduced elsewhere due to subtle technical problems in shielding the earth's magnetic field and in building up an artificial magnetic field; it was not until 1972, when their results were accepted for publication by the journal Science , that they became known and recognized internationally.

1971–1973: In five three-month research stays in Spain, Wiltschko & Wiltschko investigated how magnetic sense and astronomical navigation (position of the sun during the day and navigation stars at night ) interact in the field; Specifically, it was about the question: How do migratory birds coming from Germany recognize that they have to "turn" south (towards Africa ) at the level of Gibraltar ?

1972–1978: Together with Eberhard Gwinner , Wiltschko worked on the investigation of questions about the innate train program. During his stay at Cornell University (1974), Wiltschko, in collaboration with ST Emlen, demonstrated the magnetic sense of the indigo finch . In collaboration with WT Keeton, the first experiments were carried out on pigeons on the role of the magnetic compass 'in finding the home and in learning to use the sun compass '. Between 1975 and 1978 the experiments with pigeons started in the USA were continued in Germany.

1979–1995: The working group Physiology and Ecology of Behavior , founded by Wiltschko in Frankfurt, became a member of the Collaborative Research Center 45 of the German Research Foundation (DFG) “Comparative Neurobiology of Behavior”. The improved financial resources of the working group enabled further experiments on the navigation system of the carrier pigeon , on the role of the magnetic compass in the creation of the navigation map, on the influence of local experience on the ability to find home and an analysis of the role of infrasound and olfactory information . In cooperation with Peter Berthold from the ornithological station in Radolfzell , studies were carried out on the inheritance of the direction of migration and together with V. Liepa ( Latvian Academy of Sciences) on the role of magnetic and celestial factors in the formation of the direction of migration. At the same time, the range of topics of the working group was expanded to include behavioral studies in house mice and brown rats , including the "handedness" of rats and mice as well as their ability to learn in the labyrinth and the inheritance of entry behavior in house mice.

In 1997 and 1998 two three-month research stays in New Zealand with M. Walker ( University of Auckland ) followed, during which Wiltschko and his host carried out a project on the accuracy of the solar compass.

Since 1995, Wolfgang Wiltschko has been working on the main topic of “magnetic field perception”, since 2001 in collaboration with Onur Güntürkün ( Ruhr University Bochum ), Günther Fleissner (University Frankfurt am Main), Nikolai Petersen (Geophysical Institute of the University of Munich ) and Thorsten Ritz ( University of California, Irvine ) for the investigation of structures that are discussed as a place of magnetic field perception.

Awards

Fonts (selection)

Review articles published in German

  • R. Wiltschko, W. Wiltschko: The orientation system of the birds. I. Compass systems. In: Journal of Ornithology . Volume 140, 1999, pp. 1-41.
  • R. Wiltschko, W. Wiltschko: The orientation system of the birds. II. Finding home and navigation. In: Journal of Ornithology. Volume 140, 1999, pp. 129-164.
  • R. Wiltschko, W. Wiltschko: The orientation system of the birds. III. Train orientation. In: Journal of Ornithology. Volume 140, 1999, pp. 273-308.
  • R. Wiltschko, W. Wiltschko: The orientation system of the birds. IV. Evolution. In: Journal of Ornithology. Volume 140, 1999, pp. 393-417.
  • W. Wiltschko, R. Wiltschko: Magnetic compass orientation in birds and its physiological basis. In: Natural Sciences. Volume 89, 2002, pp. 445-452. ( Review article )

Original work

  • W. Wiltschko: About the influence of static magnetic fields on the flight orientation of the robin (Erithacus rubecula). In: Zeitschrift für Tierpsychologie. Volume 25, 1968, pp. 536-558, doi: 10.1111 / j.1439-0310.1968.tb00028.x
  • W. Wiltschko, R. Wiltschko: The magnetic compass of European Robins. In: Science . Volume 176, 1972, pp. 62-64, doi: 10.1126 / science.176.4030.62
  • ST Emlen, W. Wiltschko, NJ Demong, R. Wiltschko, S. Bergman: Magnetic direction findings: evidence for its use in migratory Indigo Bunting. In: Science. Volume 193, 1976, pp. 505-508, doi: 10.1126 / science.193.4252.505
  • W. Wiltschko, R. Wiltschko: Disorientation of inexperienced young pigeons after transportation in total darkness. In: Nature . Volume 291, 1981, pp. 433-435, doi: 10.1038 / 291433a0
  • R. Wiltschko, D. Nohr, W. Wiltschko: Pigeons with a deficient sun compass use the magnetic compass. In: Science. Volume 214, 1981, pp. 343-345, doi: 10.1126 / science.7280697
  • H. Prior, R. Wiltschko, K. Stapput, O. Güntürkün, W. Wiltschko: Visual lateralization and homing in pigeons. In: Behav. Brain Research. Volume 154, 2004, pp. 301-310, doi: 10.1016 / j.bbr.2004.02.018
  • T. Ritz, P. Thalau, J. Phillips, R. Wiltschko, W. Wiltschko: Resonance effects indicate a radical pair mechanism for avian magnetic compass. In: Nature. Volume 429, 2004, pp. 177-180, doi: 10.1038 / nature02534
  • W. Wiltschko, M. Gesson, K. Stapput, R. Wiltschko: Light-dependent magnetoreception birds: interaction of at least two different receptors. In: Natural Sciences. Volume 91, 2004, pp. 130-134.
  • R. Wiltschko, W. Wiltschko: Avian magnetic compass: Its functional properties and physical basis. In: Current Zoology. Volume 56, No. 3, 2010, pp. 265–276, full text (PDF)
  • T. Ritz, M. Ahmad, H. Mouritsen, R. Wiltschko, W. Wiltschko: Photoreceptor-based magnetoreception: optimal design of receptor molecules, cells, and neuronal processing. In: Journal of the Royal Society Interface. Volume 7, 2010, pp. 135–146, doi: 10.1098 / rsif.2009.0456.focus , full text (PDF)
  • R. Wiltschko, I. Schiffner, P. Fuhrmann, W. Wiltschko: The Role of the Magnetite-Based Receptors in the Beak in Pigeon Homing. In: Current Biology. Volume 20, 2012, pp. 1534-1538, doi: 10.1016 / j.cub.2010.06.073
  • C. Niessner, S. Denzau, J. Gross, L. Peichl, H.-J. Bischof, G. Fleissner , W. Wiltschko, R. Wiltschko: Avian Ultraviolet / Violet Cones Identified as Probable Magnetoreceptors. In: PLoS ONE. Volume 6, No. 5, 2011: e20091, doi: 10.1371 / journal.pone.0020091
  • R. Wiltschko, W. Wiltschko: The magnetite-based receptors in the beak of birds and their role in avian navigation. In: Journal of Comparative Physiology A. Volume 199, No. 2, 2013, pp. 89-98, doi: 10.1007 / s00359-012-0769-3

Book publications

  • Roswitha Wiltschko, Wolfgang Wiltschko: Magnetic Orientation in Animals. Springer Verlag, Heidelberg 1998, ISBN 3-540-59257-1 .
  • Wolfgang Wiltschko: Magnetic Orientation. In: Josef Dudel, Randolf Menzel, Robert F. Schmidt: Neuroscience. From molecule to cognition. Springer, Berlin 2001, ISBN 3-540-41335-9 .

Web links

Commons : Wolfgang Wiltschko  - Collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ a b uni-bielefeld.de ( Memento from May 14, 2014 in the Internet Archive ), dump from November 29, 2011: “Ehrenpromotion Prof. Dr. Wolfgang Wiltschko "
  2. ↑ Reinhard Wandtner: Compass in the eye. For the seventieth of the ornithologist Wolfgang Wiltschko. In: Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung. No. 195, August 21, 2008, p. 45.
  3. ↑ Friedrich Wilhelm Merkel , Wolfgang Wiltschko: Magnetism and finding direction for restless robins. In: Vogelwarte. Volume 23, 1965, pp. 71-77.
  4. ↑ Pioneers of Orientation Research. Bioscientists Roswitha and Wolfgang Wiltschko named honorary members of the Royal Institute of Navigation. On: idw.de of July 30, 2009.
personal data
SURNAME Wiltschko, Wolfgang
BRIEF DESCRIPTION German zoologist and behavioral scientist
DATE OF BIRTH August 21, 1938
PLACE OF BIRTH Kienberg , Bohemian Forest