A mouse or plural mice is a small mammal from the rodent order of animals.

Mice have a pointed snout, small rounded ears, and a long almost hairless tail.

There are more than 30 known species of mice.

The house mouse is the best known type of mouse and is a popular pet variety. Other mouse species seen in and around the house are the field mouse, the American white-footed mouse and the deer mouse.

Mice are usually nocturnal animals. They have poor eyesight but make up for this with their very good hearing and smell.

Mice have a number of predators including cats, wild dogs, foxes, birds of prey, and snakes.

In the wild, mice are herbivores that eat all kinds of fruit and grains from plants.

Mice tails can grow as long as their bodies.

Mice use their whiskers to sense changes in temperature and to help feel the surface they are walking along.

Mice build very complex burrows with long entrances and many escape routes. They are very clean and tidy rodents with their burrows often having separate areas for storing food, sleeping and going to the toilet.

A mouse eats 15 - 20 times a day. Therefore they usually build their homes close to food sources, tending to only travel up to 8 m from their burrows to find food.

Mice and rats are the most commonly used animals in laboratories for scientific experiments.

The mouse is a delicacy in eastern Zambia and northern Malawi, where they are eaten as a source of protein.

Because they have so many predators mice usually only live for about six months in the wild. In a lab or as a pet they can live for up to two years.

In 1928, Walt Disney's Micky Mouse was the first mouse character to be used in children cartoons and animation. Mouse characters have remained popular since  with other such as Speedy Gonzales, Jerry from Tom and Jerry, and Stuart Little.