Mouse

A mouse (pl.: mice) is a small

Domestic mice sold as pets often differ substantially in size from the common house mouse. This is attributable to breeding and different conditions in the wild. The best-known strain of mouse is the white lab mouse. It has more uniform traits that are appropriate to its use in research.

In certain contexts, mice can be considered

Primarily nocturnal^[3] animals, mice compensate for their poor eyesight with a keen sense of hearing. They depend on their sense of smell to locate food and avoid predators.^[4]

In the wild, mice are known to build intricate burrows. These burrows have long entrances and are equipped with escape tunnels. In at least one species, the architectural design of a burrow is a genetic trait.^[5]

Types of animals known as mice

The most common mice are murines, in the same clade as common rats. They are murids, along with gerbils and other close relatives.

• order Dasyuromorphia
  • marsupial mice, smaller species of Dasyuridae
• order
  Rodentia
  • suborder Castorimorpha
    • family Heteromyidae
      • Microdipodops
      • Pocket mouse, tribe Perognathinae
      • Spiny pocket mouse, genus Heteromys
  • suborder Anomaluromorpha
    • family
      Anomaluridae
      • flying mouse
  • suborder Myomorpha
    • family Cricetidae
      • Brush mouse, Peromyscus boylii
      • Florida mouse
      • Golden mouse
      • American harvest mouse, genus Reithrodontomys
      • Voles
        Often referred to as "Field or Meadow mice"
    • family Muridae
      • typical mice, the genus Mus
      • Field mice, genus Apodemus
        • Wood mouse, Apodemus sylvaticus
        • Yellow-necked mouse, Apodemus flavicollis
      • Large Mindoro forest mouse
      • Big-eared hopping mouse
      • Luzon montane forest mouse
      • Forrest's mouse
      • Pebble-mound mouse
      • Bolam's mouse
      • Eurasian harvest mouse, genus Micromys

Emotions

Researchers at the Max Planck Institute of Neurobiology have confirmed that mice have a range of facial expressions. They used machine vision to spot familiar human emotions like pleasure, disgust, nausea, pain, and fear.^[6][7][8]

Diet

In nature, mice are largely herbivores, consuming any kind of fruit or grain from plants.^[9] However, mice adapt well to urban areas and are known for eating almost all types of food scraps. In captivity, mice are commonly fed commercial pelleted mouse diet. These diets are nutritionally complete, but they still need a large variety of vegetables.

Despite popular belief, most mice do not have a special appetite for cheese. They will only eat cheese for lack of better options.^[10][11]

Human use

As experimental animals

Mice are common

Reasons for common selection of mice are that they are small and inexpensive, have a widely varied diet, are easily maintained, and can reproduce quickly. Several generations of mice can be observed in a relatively short time. Mice are generally very docile if raised from birth and given sufficient human contact. However, certain strains have been known to be quite temperamental.

As pets

Many people buy mice as companion pets. They can be playful, loving and can grow used to being handled. Like pet rats, pet mice should not be left unsupervised outside as they have many natural predators, including (but not limited to) birds, snakes, lizards, cats, and dogs. Male mice tend to have a stronger odor than the females. However, mice are careful groomers and as pets they never need bathing. Well looked-after mice can make ideal pets. Some common mouse care products are:

• cage, but a variety of special mouse cages are now available. Most should have a secure door.^[13]
• Food – Special pelleted and seed-based food is available. Mice can generally eat most rodent food (for rats, mice, hamsters, gerbils, etc.)
• Bedding – Usually made of hardwood pulp, such as
  mold
  once it gets wet, which is rough on their feet.

As feed

Mice are a staple in the diet of many small

Humans have eaten mice since prehistoric times. In Victorian Britain, fried mice were still given to children as a folk remedy for bed-wetting;^[15] while Jared Diamond reports creamed mice being used in England as a dietary supplement during Second World War rationing.^[16] Mice are a delicacy throughout eastern Zambia and northern Malawi,^[17] where they are a seasonal source of protein. Field rat is a popular food in Vietnam and neighboring countries.^[18] In many countries, however, mouse is no longer a food item.

Prescribed cures in Ancient Egypt included mice as medicine.^[19] In Ancient Egypt, when infants were ill, mice were eaten as treatment by their mothers.^[20][21] It was believed that mouse eating by the mother would help heal the baby who was ill.^{[22][23][24][25][26]}

See also

• Fe, Fi, Fo, Fum, and Phooey, mice who orbited the Moon a record 75 times in 1972 on Apollo 17
• List of fictional rodents
• Mouse brain development timeline
• Mousetrap
• Musophobia
  (fear of mice)

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mice.

• Fancy Mice: extensive information about breeding mice and keeping them as pets
• High-resolution images of cross sections of mice brains
• History of the mouse (with focus on their use in genetics studies)
• Mouse tracks: How to identify mouse tracks