Thursday 22 May 2014

Jungle Gym: Wild Animals Run on Wheels for Fun

By Stephanie Pappas, Senior Writer   |   May 20, 2014 07:01pm ET



Caged mice aren't the only animals that enjoy a spin on the old exercise wheel. New video footage reveals wild mice, rats, and even frogs and slugs like running (or crawling) on wheels, too.

These strange findings come courtesy of a study that used motion-activated video cameras to monitor running wheels placed in areas where wild mice roam. The study aimed to determine whether caged mice run on the wheel because captivity has made them neurotic, or if wheel-running is just fun for animals.

"The main concern that has been put forward by many [researchers] is that, 'Is this is an unnatural behavior, an artifact of captivity, or is it something that could occur more naturally?'" said study researcherYuri Robbers of Leiden University Medical Center in the Netherlands. "That issue, I think, we've laid to rest."

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