A real rat pack

ST. LOUIS – Songbirds may be the Sinatras of the animal world, but male mice can carry a tune too, say Washington University researchers who were surprised by what they heard.

Scientists have known for decades that male lab mice produce high-frequency sounds – undetectable by human ears – when they pick up the scent of a female mouse. This high-pitched babble is presumably for courtship, although scientists are not certain.

But it turns out those sounds are more complex and interesting than previously thought.

“There was a pattern to them,” said researcher Timothy Holy. “They sounded a lot like bird songs.”

If the researchers’ analysis is confirmed, mice would share the singing habit with songbirds, humpback whales, porpoises, insects and, possibly, bats.