# Cow orientation **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [May 20, 2014, 6:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850 "2014-05-20T18:16:58Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Trancephalic](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/trancephalic/32/380_2.png) [@Trancephalic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trancephalic)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2014, 11:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/21 "2014-05-20T23:06:40Z")
[Sea pigs do the same thing.](http://bogleech.com/abyss-seapigs.html) I don’t know how migratory they are, but surely they’re working with a less sophisticated nervous system, which makes it all the more eerie. ---
**Author:** ![Flywheel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Flywheel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flywheel)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2014, 11:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/22 "2014-05-20T23:20:50Z")
> [@md2000](#): > > One old tale I heard (herd?) in pilot training was that when it’s windy, cows will point into the wind. An important detail for emergency landings, land into the wind but not into the cows. It also works with chickens. (Or so my [source](http://splicd.com/vzxsEVrkjww/863/886) says.) ---
**Author:** ![Great\_Antibob](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e47c2d/32.png) [@Great\_Antibob](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Great_Antibob)\ **Post date:** [May 20, 2014, 11:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/23 "2014-05-20T23:30:00Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > IIRC, we looked at that paper claiming magnetic alignment before, and concluded that the statistics in it were extremely sketchy. Indeed. As a matter of fact, pretty much all of the “geomagnetic alignment in animals” papers have come from the same small research group. And a lot of their citations come from each other. That doesn’t necessarily make the results suspect, but I’d like to know that somebody else has gotten similar results, especially as [others have had troubles replicating the results elsewhere](http://www.nature.com/news/the-mystery-of-the-magnetic-cows-1.9350). ---
**Author:** ![AaronX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7bcc69/32.png) [@AaronX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AaronX)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/24 "2014-05-21T01:14:48Z")
They’re homoosexual. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 1:25am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/25 "2014-05-21T01:25:50Z")
> [@TriPolar](#): > > I have heard this also. However, I think herd behavior is the best explanation. Either a leader or an accidental percentage of cows face the same way and they all follow suit. That would result in a random alignment relative to magnetic poles, not the results that were reported. > [@](#): > > Alignment with the magnetic pole is questionable, the herd doesn’t always face the same direction that I’ve noticed, but I’ve only spent any time around small herds, so I guess maybe. Unless you were collecting data in a systematic fashion, such observations are worthless. I don’t know if the research results reported will hold up in the long run, but these kinds of observations hardly refute them. ---
**Author:** ![turtlescanfly](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/65b543/32.png) [@turtlescanfly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/turtlescanfly)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 1:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/26 "2014-05-21T01:32:57Z")
Didn’t you ever do that thing where a group of people all stare at the ceiling or something, and then when someone comes in the room, they end up looking up too? Same thing. The cows are trolling us… (“Hey, Bessie! Lets all face the same way, and see how much time Farmer John wastes trying to figure out why!”). I mean, you’re a cow, what else do you do for lulz? But seriously, my two cents… facing into the wind seems to me the most logical explanation. Would account for why it only happens sometimes (non windy days doesn’t matter), plus maybe just a little confirmation bias (it doesn’t happen as often as you think it happens). ---
**Author:** ![TriPolar](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tripolar/32/3008_2.png) [@TriPolar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TriPolar)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 1:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/27 "2014-05-21T01:40:08Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > That would result in a random alignment relative to magnetic poles, not the results that were reported. > > Unless you were collecting data in a systematic fashion, such observations are worthless. > > I don’t know if the research results reported will hold up in the long run, but these kinds of observations hardly refute them. I have no idea what you are talking about. I am refuting the facing into the wind theory because I have seen cows aligned when there is no wind. I’m not the least interested in an internet blurb and magnetic fields. So your statement hardly refutes mine. ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 1:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/28 "2014-05-21T01:58:28Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Even for animals that are not strictly migratory, but roam over a large home range, it can still be useful to know direction in order to navigate. How so? ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/29 "2014-05-21T02:06:26Z")
I have a photo of a herd of Hawaiian (Big Island) cows, all facing me. And they were facing that direction before I was there; that’s why I stopped and took the picture. ---
**Author:** ![Twoflower](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/twoflower/32/22_2.png) [@Twoflower](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Twoflower)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/30 "2014-05-21T02:16:06Z")
Cow orientation doesn’t take long. Being a cow is a pretty simple job; they’re ready to take on the fully responsibility very quickly. ---
**Author:** ![johnpost](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/f17d59/32.png) [@johnpost](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/johnpost)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 2:34am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/31 "2014-05-21T02:34:24Z")
cows are a social domesticated animal. they are used to acting and moving together to get to food and for udder/utter relief. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/32 "2014-05-21T03:43:21Z")
> [@PlainJain](#): > > How so? Seriously? You really can’t imagine knowing which way north is won’t help you find your way about? ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 3:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/33 "2014-05-21T03:54:42Z")
When cows jump over the moon, does the whole herd commonly do so together? I learned in college chemistry that water molecules are polar, and (slightly) attracted to magnets. Cows are largely made of water, so I’d expect them to be polarized. Given their lunartropic habit of jumping over moons, together with their herd instincts, it’s not surprising that, like moths, they tend to spiral into candle flames _en masse_ and become roast beef. That is why we’ve domesticated them and make a major food source of them. ---
**Author:** ![Senegoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/senegoid/32/6606_2.png) [@Senegoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Senegoid)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 3:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/34 "2014-05-21T03:55:53Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Seriously? > > You really can’t imagine knowing which way north is won’t help you find your way about? Does it matter if they know which way is north, or if instead they know which way is east and which way is west? It’s kind of easy to know which way is east or west. ---
**Author:** ![Colibri](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/colibri/32/1841_2.png) [@Colibri](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Colibri)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 4:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/35 "2014-05-21T04:06:30Z")
> [@Senegoid](#): > > Does it matter if they know which way is north, or if instead they know which way is east and which way is west? It’s kind of easy to know which way is east or west. No it isn’t. The magnetic field is always there regardless if the sun is visible or not, cloudy or clear, day or night. To know which way is east you have to see which direction the sun rose (which might not be possible if it were cloudy), and you also have to remember it (which could be a problem for an animal as dumb as a cow). And if you move it won’t be in the same position relative to any landmark. None of this is true of a magnetic field. Animals do use celestial cues for navigation, but using them is much more complex a task than using a magnetic field (if you can detect one). ---
**Author:** ![PlainJain](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/5daacb/32.png) [@PlainJain](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PlainJain)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 4:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/36 "2014-05-21T04:40:07Z")
> [@Colibri](#): > > Seriously? > > You really can’t imagine knowing which way north is won’t help you find your way about? Based on your comment they aren’t migratory, no I don’t see how important knowing where north is. It’s not like they are headed for South America. Don’t they just gradually move to move where there is more food as the seasons change? But I don’t know about cows and apparently you do so I asked. ---
**Author:** ![Flywheel](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/eb8c5e/32.png) [@Flywheel](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Flywheel)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 4:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/37 "2014-05-21T04:43:54Z")
John Steinbeck might have had the right idea in _Cannery Row_: > [@](#): > > On the black earth on which the ice plants bloomed, hundreds of black stink bugs crawled. And many of them stuck their tails up in the air. “Look at all them stink bugs,” Hazel remarked, grateful to the bugs for being there. > > “They’re interesting,” said Doc. > > “Well, what they got their asses up in the air for?” > > Doc rolled up his wool socks and put them in the rubber boots and from his pocket he brought out dry socks and a pair of thin moccasins. “I don’t know why,” he said. “I looked them up recently–they’re very common animals and one of the commonest things they do is put their tails up in the air. And in all the books there isn’t one mention of the fact that they put their tails up in the air or why.” > > Hazel turned one of the stink bugs over with the toe of his wet tennis shoe and the shining black beetle strove madly with floundering legs to get upright again. “Well, why do you think they do it?” > > **“I think they’re praying,”** said Doc. > > “What!” Hazel was shocked. > > “The remarkable thing,” said Doc, “isn’t that they put their tails up in the air–the really incredibly remarkable thing is that we find it remarkable. We can only use ourselves as yardsticks. \*\*If we did something as inexplicable and strange we’d probably be praying–so maybe they’re praying.” > > \*\*“Let’s get the hell out of here,” said Hazel. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 1:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/38 "2014-05-21T13:22:07Z")
**Senegoid** , I’m pretty sure that whole post was a joke, but in case it’s not, or in case anyone else didn’t figure it out, water is electrically polarized, not magnetically. Not only is water not attracted to a magnet, it’s actually repelled (though much more weakly than iron is attracted-- You’d need a pretty strong magnet to notice it). ---
**Author:** ![AaronX](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/7bcc69/32.png) [@AaronX](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AaronX)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/39 "2014-05-21T14:08:35Z")
Also, a bunch of water is not spontaneously polarized - the dipoles are randomly arranged. ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 21, 2014, 2:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850/40 "2014-05-21T14:59:28Z")
> [@PlainJain](#): > > Based on your comment they aren’t migratory, no I don’t see how important knowing where north is. Domesticated cows may or may not be migratory (we’d have to leave feral herds someplace to know for sure.) Their not-very-distant ancestors were definitely migratory; all [modern](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Buffalo_Trace_(road)) [wild](http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/651264/yak) [bovines](http://www.wildcattleconservation.org/SpeciesFactSheets/BosGaurus.htm) are. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/cow-orientation/688850.md?page=3)