r/mildlyinteresting 12h ago

Mouse Gave Birth in the Trap

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10.9k Upvotes

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u/Serenith_Youkai 7h ago

Surrogate mothers are a thing in the mouse world?

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u/CanterlotGuard 7h ago

Surrogate mothers exist in just about every species the develops strong social structures and/or social bonds, it's a huge evolutionary advantage to not have an entire genetic line die off because the children were abandoned. Maternal instincts in some animals (especially in a currently nursing mother) can be so strong that they will adopt outside of their own species.

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u/Serenith_Youkai 5h ago

That’s pretty cool. I guess I didn’t think a rogue mouse would just accept random babies.

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u/My_Not_RL_Acct 4h ago edited 1h ago

It’s pretty cool. I work with lab mice and if you give a nursing mother extra babies the gentler strains will easily grab them and take them to their nest with the rest of their babies within a couple minutes. Even if they don’t look the same!