Mice sense Moon and Sun
Year: 2026
Type: dataset
Abstract: This dataset accompanies the study - "Mice sense Moon and Sun" Barde et al., 2026; reporting that spontaneous mouse behavior shows long-timescale rhythms that align with natural geophysical cycles. Across multiple laboratory datasets, mice housed under controlled conditions displayed recurrent fluctuations in activity and spatial exploration at approximately semi-lunar and lunar timescales. These rhythms were observed across nine cohorts from four facilities on two continents, with recordings spanning from several months to more than three years.The analyses include behavioral measures from enriched group-housing systems and running-wheel datasets, including roaming entropy and activity-based readouts. Spectral and phase-based analyses revealed prominent periodicities near 14 and 28 days, with activity peaks tending to occur around full and new Moon phases. Alignment was assessed using circular statistics and circular-shift permutation tests to compare the observed temporal relationship against null distributions.The dataset also includes analyses relating behavioral fluctuations to periodic changes in the local geomagnetic field. Behavioral activity showed temporal alignment with geomagnetic variation across infradian and approximately 24-h ranges, with particularly clear patterns under constant darkness and in mice lacking normal circadian rhythmicity. Together, these data support the possibility that mouse behavior remains coupled to environmental geophysical fluctuations even under standard laboratory conditions, raising new questions about magnetosensitivity and infradian organization in mammals.
Source: Figshare
Language: English
Subfield: Endocrine and Autonomic Systems
Field: Neuroscience
Domain: Life Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W7224434472