Stories of domestic cats traveling significant distances to return home have long intrigued pet owners and the scientific community. This is often referred to as homing ability. Documented cases describe felines reappearing at their residences after being displaced or disappearing for weeks or months and returning thereafter. This raises questions about how these animals achieve such feats. Researchers have been investigating whether cats possess an internal navigation system and the role of multiple sensory and neurological mechanisms to explain this homing ability.
Explaining Homing Ability in Domestic Cats: Do Cats Have an Internal Navigation System?
Place Cells, Grid Cells, and Head Direction Cells
Investigations in mammalian brains have identified the hippocampus and entorhinal cortex as the main brain structures responsible for navigation. Earlier studies on rodents and primates revealed place cells and grid cells as specific neurons responsible for spatial navigation and memory. This is later confirmed in different animals and specific mammalian species.
Cats also have these brain structures and neurons. A 1986 report by M. P. Winter and colleagues explained that the perirhinal cortex connects the parahippocampal cortex to other parts of the brain and helps information from the environment get into the memory system. The entorhinal cortex has a more internal role that connects and coordinates other relevant brain areas.
Scientific studies suggest that cats do not rely on a single navigational tool but on a combination of brain circuits and sensory inputs. Both their hippocampus and entorhinal cortex enable spatial memory and orientation. Together with head direction cells, these brain areas allow felines to form internal maps that encode landmarks, direction, and spatial orientation.
Integration of Different Sensory Inputs
A 1922 paper by American biologist and writer F. H. Herrick underscored that the home of a cat is not a single point in a region but a familiar area. He also hypothesizes that its homing instinct is based on kinesthetic or muscle sense. The animal has a direction-constant or the ability to maintain a constant direction toward home. This hypothesis has been refuted by modern studies.
Cats also depend on environmental sensory cues. Visual landmarks help them anchor memory to recognizable features. Olfactory input builds a scent-based map of territory. Cats reinforce spatial awareness by depositing and detecting pheromones. These overlapping sensory systems provide the information to sustain memory of routes and aid in repeated homing behavior.
Other mechanisms contribute to the homing instinct of cats. The vestibular system in the inner ear allows them to monitor acceleration, balance, and motion, and measure distance traveled. Their whiskers provide tactile feedback in close environments. Moreover, when combined with acute hearing, these senses create a detailed spatial perception that supports navigation.
No Concrete Evidence For Magnetoreception
The likelihood of magnetic sensing has been considered. Research reveals that other mammals, like dogs, can sense the magnetic field. However, genetic evidence indicates cats may lack the protein required for magnetoreception. Data show little support for geomagnetic orientation in felines. This leaves cognitive mapping and sensory integration as stronger explanations.
It is also worth mentioning that tracking studies using tracking collars equipped with GPS reveal patterns consistent with limited yet precise territorial navigation. Domestic cats typically maintain small and defined ranges and return along established routes. These findings demonstrate reliance on spatial memory and familiar cues rather than long-range navigation.
Note that researchers D. A. McVea and K. G. Pearson ran an experiment that involved bothering cats while walking. Observations showed the walking patterns changed, and these changes lasted and only happened when the cats were placed in the same environment. This indicates that cats have the ability to learn and remember their paths and associated obstacles.
Homing Ability of Domestic Cats in a Nutshell: Integration of Different Mechanisms
The discussions above and all relevant studies on mammalian cognition and homing ability in feline species point to the fact that the navigation system of domestic cats functions as an integration of multiple biological mechanisms rather than a singular navigation system like magnetoreception. Cognitive mapping, sensory inputs, and path integration work collectively to explain homing behavior in domestic cats and other feline species. These mechanisms are not only responsible for their homing ability but also for guiding them through their environments.
FURTHER READINGS AND REFERENCES
- Herrick, F. H. 1922. “Homing Powers of Cat.” The Scientific Monthly. 14(6): 535-539. JSTOR: 6677
- McVea, D. A., and Pearson, K. G. 2007. “Contextual learning and obstacle memory in the walking cat. Integrative and Comparative Biology.” 47(4): 457-464. DOI: 1093/icb/icm053
- Pyott, M. L., Norris, D. R., Mitchell, G. W., Custode, L., and Gow, E. A. 2024. “Home Range Size and Habitat Selection of Owned Outdoor Domestic Cats in Urban Southwestern Ontario.” PeerJ. 12: e17159. DOI: 7717/peerj.17159
- Sanders, H., Rennó-Costa, C., Idiart, M., and Lisman, J. 2015. “Grid Cells and Place Cells: An Integrated View of their Navigational and Memory Function.” Trends in Neurosciences. 38(12): 763-775. DOI: 1016/j.tins.2015.10.004
- Witter, M. P., Room, P., Groenewegen, H. J., and Lohman, A. H. M. 1986. “Connections of the Parahippocampal Cortex in the Cat. V. Intrinsic Connections; Comments on Input/Output Connections with the Hippocampus.” Journal of Comparative Neurology. 252(1): 78-94. DOI: 1002/cne.902520105