Long-distance flights can disrupt seabirds’ internal body clocks, causing navigation errors. Multiple outlets report that research led by Oxford University finds that Manx shearwaters flying fast across the Atlantic experience a mismatch between internal time and local time, similar to jet lag in humans. When that clock shift occurs, the birds make predictable errors when using the sun for orientation.
The reported evidence comes from tracking data and shows that rapid eastward flights play a key role in throwing birds off course. Outlets describe how shearwaters returning from foraging trips can be displaced by hundreds of miles due to the timing mismatch that follows their travel.
While all sources present the same core finding and study context, they differ in emphasis: some focus on the mechanism of internal clock–sun navigation, others highlight the implications for birds on return flights and foraging behaviour, and one foregrounds the relatable “jet lag” comparison. The common thread is that GPS and/or tracking reveal time-zone effects on navigation rather than a random loss of direction.
