Magnetoreception and navigation in vertebrates: from biophysics to brain and behaviour

The central goal of the Sonderforschungsbereich (SFB)/Collaborative Research Center (CRC) 1372 is to gain a comprehensive and multidisciplinary understanding of magnetoreception and navigation in vertebrates, from the biophysical mechanisms to the natural behaviour of navigating animals, taking into account all intermediate steps.


Scientists at six universities and institutes are working together in 17 sub-projects to reach this goal using the latest biochemical, neuroscientific, electrophysiological, physical, genetic and behavioural biology methods.

NaviSense is funded as Cluster of Excellence


May 22, 2025 Today, the DFG announced its decision on which of the Clusters of Excellences are to be funded. We are very excited to share that the initiative “NaviSense: International Cluster of Excellence for the Sensory Basis, Mechanisms, and Impacts of Animal Navigation” of our colleagues received the funding! 

Congratulations! We are looking forward to working with you on new perspectives in animal navigation research in the coming years!  See also here for more information. 

Abstract submission for Young Researchers Symposium


April 7, 2025  Abstract submission for our 2nd international symposium for young scientists on magnetoreception and navigation in animals from 19 to 21 November 2025 in Hamburg is now open (until 30 June)! 


Please find more information on our YRS here or go directly to the abstract submission form. 

Spring meeting at the Ruhr University Bochum


April 2, 2025  For this year's spring meeting, 50 SFB members from Oldenburg, Wilhelmshaven and Berlin visited our colleagues from the Biopsychology Group at Ruhr University Bochum led by Onur Güntürkün. For three intensive and inspiring days, we exchanged scientific ideas, discussed projects and established new collaborations in scientific talks, poster sessions, small group meetings and walks and talks through the university's springtime botanical garden. Thank you to the entire Biopsychology group for the warm welcome and the informative lab tour!

Watching electron motion in solids


March 26, 2025  Studying the extremely fast movements of electrons much easier than previously possible - as our SFB physicists Daniel Timmer, Antonietta de Sio and Christoph Lienau and co-workers report in their article "Phase-cycling and double-quantum two-dimensional electronic spectroscopy using a common-path birefringent interferometer". The new method allows for  a variety of new experimental possibilities for spectroscopy and microscopy. The 2D spectroscopy is, e.g., ideally suited for probing coherent dynamics and charge transfer processes in erCry4 proteins (image by M. Gittinger). 


See a report about their fascinating findings in the UOL news and the original article in 'Optica'. 

Symposium on Animal Navigation


February 20, 2025  "Moving beyond the sensory basis and mechanisms of animal navigation" was the title of our 1st international symposium at Oldenburg university, with Miriam Liedvogel, Pauline Fleischmann and Ilia Solov'yov as scientific organisers. 


With 110 participants coming from 10 different countries, including 22 speakers and 42 poster presenters and a programme ranging from how moths navigate to exotic quantum materials and robots that fly like birds, the symposium was a great success. Thanks to everyone that contributed and to the wonderful audience!


See also the article in the UOL news. 

Website of 'Navisense' online 


February 10, 2025  The website of the excellence cluster initiative 'Navisense' is online now!  

New publication of our Research Fellow Pauline Fleischmann


December 10, 2024 In her brand-new publication in Current Biology, Pauline and her team report that desert ants use a different mechanism for magnetic perception than most insects studied so far, such as the famous monarch butterflies. The researchers suggest that the desert ants' magnetic sense is based on tiny magnetic particles, such as the iron oxide mineral magnetite.


For a summary in German, find the UOL press release here. 


Photo: Robin Grob

Symposium on Animal Navigation


November 15, 2024 We are excited to invite you to our 1st international symposium on "Moving beyond the sensory basis and mechanisms of animal navigation" which will take place from 18 to 20 February 2025 at the University of Oldenburg.


In four different sessions, 17 invited speakers plus seven short talks will cover the multidisciplinary topics from behaviour and senses to robotics and environmental consequences of animal navigation. 


We look forward to meeting you soon in Oldenburg!

Microscopy photo "Visible vision"of Janne Brokate (Neu01) wins 3rd prize


November 20, 2024 Congratulations to Janne Brokate, former Bachelor student in the Neu01 project, who took 3rd place (out of 56 applicants) in the ‘Research under the Lens’ photo competition organised by the University of Oldenburg!


‘What at first glance looks like abstract art is actually a symbol of the wonders of nature: As part of my bachelor's thesis, I stained various cells of the retina with fluorescent antibodies and photographed them under a microscope. Beauty is not only in the eye of the beholder, but sometimes also in the observation of an eye.’

TV report and blog interview with Research Fellow Dr Pauline Fleischmann


October 25, 2024 The German television channel NDR reported on the research of Pauline and her team - you can find the report here. 


Pauline was also interviewed by the Myrmecological News Blog. Read the article about ‘Navigating through the postdoc career while exploring navigation systems in Cataglyphis desert ants’ (picture by Robin Grob). 

Autumn meeting at the UOL


September 30 & October 1, 2024 At this year's autumn meeting, 60 members and associated scientists presented talks and posters, discussed existing and new collaborations in small groups and at walk & talks - as always in a very stimulating and communicative atmosphere.


The winners of our 2nd poster competition were: 1st Annika, 2nd Baladev, 3rd Chiara, Timo, Nathalie and Jingjing. 


Congratulations on your outstanding posters!

‘Ants are the coolest animals ever’ with Dr Pauline Fleischmann


September 19, 2024  In the latest episode of "Hirn gehört: Oldenburger Wissensschnack" (in German), Pauline talks about her favourite research animals: why they are more similar to humans than you might think, how we can use ants to better understand the general principles of neurobiology - and, of course, what she herself has discovered about their magnetic compass (graphic by Hirngehört). 

SFB 1372 at Instagram


August 14, 2024 Follow us on our new launched instagram channel! We look forward to keeping you informed about ongoing projects, workshops, publications and other news about our SFB.

New article of our Nav02 researchers


April 17, 2024  With their review on "A conceptual framework on the role of magnetic cues in songbird migration ecology" (Karwinkel et al., Biological Reviews), Thiemo and his co-authors summarise the methodological approaches for assessing magnetic-cue-related hypotheses in migratory songbirds and evaluate their contribution to understanding these processes in the wild. They also present a conceptual framework investigating how magnetic cues might affect migratory decisions from stopovers to active migratory flight towards their destination. 

Collaborative study on "Adaptive evolution and loss of a putative magnetoreceptor in passerines" published.


April 11, 2024 The news portal of the UOL reports on a genetic study that supports the hypothesis that proteins in the eye of migratory birds are responsible for magnetoreception. Six researchers of our SFB are co-authors of this study (Langebrake et al., Proceedings of the Royal Society B). Please find the press release here. 

Spring meeting with poster prize


March 18-20, 2024 Fifty-eight SFB members and associates met, as last year, at the Thülsfelder Talsperre near Garrel for our spring meeting. We enjoyed the research talks and had plenty of time for discussion and interaction during two poster sessions, four small group meetings and a long walk & talk around the lake. For the first time, there was a poster award for the three best posters of the doctoral students and postdocs. Congratulations to Annika, Sascha and Nathalie! We look forward to meeting all of you soon in September at the UOL!

Writing retreat for female scientists on Langeoog


March 2024 For four days, female junior researchers from our SFB were able to concentrate on writing papers at a self-organised writing retreat on the East Frisian island of Langeoog. The weather was glorious and we were able to go for a walk on the beach to clear our heads for new creativity. 

Craving for ornithology - especially when songbirds migrate: Heiko Schmaljohann in the Oldenburger science podcast


December 2023 You can listen to Heiko from December 22 on in the most recent episode 34 of  "Hirn gehört: Oldenburger Wissensschnack" (in German). 


You will also find an interview with Karl-Wilhelm Koch about his research on phototransduction and why calcium is his favourite element of the PSE (episode 23).

Migratory mosquito bats (Pipistrellus pygmaeus) can perceive the Earth's magnetic field


December 6, 2023 Oliver Lindecke and his colleagues from Bangor University and University of Latvia found that the these bats seem to be sensitive to the inclination angle of the field, similar to birds (published in "Biological Letters" of the Royal Society).


Please find the UOL press release (only in German) and the original article here. 


Picture: Christian Giese

The SFB subsidised bike trailers for Pauline's "For Woman in Science" award


November 2023 The SFB 1372 has increased Pauline's prize money to purchase a total of four trailers. Interested parties from Faculty V of the UOL can contact mobile.gleichstellung.fk5[at]uol.de. Allocation is on a first-come, first-served basis, with female students and doctoral candidates having priority due to their financial means. More information here. 

PhD day in Wilhelmshaven 


July 5, 2023 The PhD Day in Wilhelmshaven was marked by stormy winds and cheerful minds. Highlights for the doctoral students of the SFB 1372 were the team-building activities, the input on mental health and the guided tour of the Wadden Sea Visitor Centre. Unfortunately, due to the weather conditions, we had to forego the trip to the colony of common terns at Banter See.

Kick-off meeting of the second funding period


March 20 & 21, 2023  Our two-day kick-off meeting took place at the Thülsfelder Talsperre near Garrel. We particularly enjoyed the discussions about the newly founded iRTG and a workshop on "Feedback Culture" led by Birgit Keydel (coach for team development). During a "Walk & Talk" along the lake, old and new members were able to get to know each other and exchange.

Renewal for a second funding period


25 November 2022 - We are pleased to announce the renewal of our SFB 1372 for a second funding period. Thanks to the brilliant team - we are excited about the next four years!


See also the press release of the UOL.

SFB 1372 goes Nature


June 23, 2021 - With a great interdisciplinary team effort Xu et al. were able to add another piece to the puzzle of how quantum mechanics help birds find their way. Xu and colleagues were able to show the magnetic sensitivity of Cryptochrome 4 in migratory songbirds.


Congratulations to all the scientists involved! Read the full paper here.

Appointment of Miriam Liedvogel 


September 2020 - Miriam Liedvogel was appointed professor of Ornithology at the Institute of Biology and Environmental Sciences at the University of Oldenburg. She is also the new director of the Institute for Avian Research "Vogelwarte Helgoland" in Wilhelmshaven. Congratulations Miriam!

New PI - Ilia Solov'yov


Since July 2020, Ilia Solov'yov strengthens our SFB as PI with his project Sig05 - Structural and dynamical traits of avian cryptochromes. Welcome Ilia!

Writing retreat for female scientists


The central currency for a successful scientific career are publications and third-party funding applications. In November 2019, the Royal Society of Chemistry in Nature published that there are still structural hurdles for women scientists to publicise. Therefore, the SFB 1372 invites all female scientists to a Writing Retreat from 2nd to 6th of March 2020 in the Seminarhaus Pegasus. The Scientific Writing Retreat offers female scientists a framework in which they can devote themselves to writing publications and third-party funding applications undisturbed and intensively.

Opening Lecture Zugvogeltage 


Vortrag: Wie finden Zugvögel ihren Weg?

Prof. Dr. Henrik Mouritsen, Carl von Ossietzky Universität Oldenburg

Donnerstag, 12.09.2019, 19:00 Uhr

Landesmuseum Natur und Mensch

Damm 38-44, 26135 Oldenburg

SFB 1372 Kick-off Meeting 


April 15 & 16, 2019 Our two day kick-off meeting took place in Aerzen. We especially enjoyed the teambulding measures and the possibility to get to know all new SFB members. Welcome on board!

Beer Coaching - Road to a FH professorship


with guest speaker Prof. Dr. Liane Haak (Business informatics, HS Osnabrück)


Are you looking for a casual opportunity to meet other PostDocs and explore career options? 


Join the Beer Coaching on Feb 26, 2019!