Talorchestia tricornuta shoemaker (Amphipoda, Talitridae) from sandy shores of Gabon: Compass mechanisms of orientation

We studied the capacity for zonal recovery in an equatorial sandhopper, Tal orchestia tricornuta, inhabiting the sandy beaches of equatorial West Afric a. These beaches are often narrow and backed by an evident landscape. Thr s ky usually has heavy cloud cover. The experiments were performed both in a confined environment and in the field, in full sun or an overcast sky, with the magnetic field natural, deviated or absent. T. tricornuta was able to assume the correct direction using the sun and magnetic field as orienting factors. Moreover, the releases in the field with the natural landscape vis ible indicate that the landscape may constitute a further important orienti ng factor in zonal recovery.