Singing mice

19mei2010
Source: news.discovery.com
When male house mice smell the presence of an available, adult and non-related female, they...sing. This singing is inaudible to the human ear; it is an ultrasonic love song.
The frequencies of these sounds lie above the frequencies that humans are able to hear, so our night’s rest does not have to be disturbed by mice on heat. The female mice are attracted by the songs of unrelated male mice. The females do not sing. They do also produce ultrasonic sounds, but only towards other female mice. Their response to the singing men is that they start cleaning themselves endlessly.

Ultrasonic sound is not only inaudible for humans, but also for many predators that hunt mice. Ultrasonic sound also produces less vibration, which could be detected by snakes. Weasels and minks, however, are able to hear ultrasonic sounds.

The researchers think that ultrasonic sounds form an important means of communication in mice. This type of sound may also be used in courtship by other rodents, such as rats.