Humans’ vestibular sense, for example, detects gravity and balance through special organs in the bony labyrinth of the inner ear. Receptors in our muscles and joints inform our sense of body position.

Nevertheless, their proliferation “set the stage” for the animal kingdom to evolve before they died out, the researchers wrote in a new report, published in the journal Precambrian Research.

Earth’s magnetic field is detected by species across the animal kingdom, but new research suggests that sea turtles may be ...