how do animals compensate for loss of sight?

Some animals make up for it because their other senses are heightened, and some just plain have other senses than we do. Many ocean creatures have what’s called an “electro-sense” – eels and sharks are a great example of this. They send out varying strengths of electrical signals and have an organ at the front of their snout that is able to interpret the signal. If you cover this signal with a rubberized compound, they are completely unable to navigate or tell that prey is in the area. There are videos that show this experiment, Moody Science has a really good one.

Many birds have a magnetic sensor in their brains that can specifically interpret the magnetic fields of the earth; even if they get blown 100’s of miles off course, they can still migrate to the exact spot – even the exact tree – that they need to go to. Even better, they do this instinctively – even if they’ve never been there. Many will go to the exact spot that their parents did.

Other birds seem to instinctively navigate by the position of the stars and sun.

Hope that helps!