House mouse

House mice live closely with people, in homes, barns and warehouses, and in fields nearby. They are curious, quick and good climbers, and live in family groups in which a dominant male and several females share a territory.

Males court females with complex ultrasonic songs, too high for people to hear. Scent marks in urine carry information about each mouse's identity, sex and status.

The house mouse is one of the most widespread mammals on Earth, and one of the most important to human knowledge: as the laboratory mouse, it has been central to research in genetics and medicine for more than a century.

In the wild it is also food for owls, hawks, snakes, foxes and cats, and a reminder that the animals living closest to us are wildlife too.

Breeding — all year indoors; spring to autumn outdoors
Gestation — about 19 to 21 days
Litter — usually five to eight young, born hairless and blind
Eyes open — at about two weeks old
Weaning — at about three weeks old
Maturity — at about six weeks old
Lifespan — usually less than a year in the wild

• Sealing gaps around pipes and doors keeps mice out more lastingly than traps.
• Glue traps cause slow, painful deaths and catch other animals too.
• Rodent poisons move up the food chain and kill owls, hawks, foxes and pets.
• Store food in sealed containers and clean up spills.

• Mice love cheese. They prefer grain, seeds and sweet foods.
• Poison is the tidy solution. Poisoned mice can die in walls, and poisoned mice are eaten by owls, hawks and cats.
• A mouse in the house means the house is dirty. Mice enter clean houses too, through tiny gaps, looking for warmth.

• White-footed mouse
• Eastern harvest mouse
• Norway rat
• Black rat