Research overview: detecting mouse ultrasonic vocalizations

Mice communicate using ultrasonic vocalizations well above the human hearing range, and these calls fall squarely within what cats can detect. This overview surveys the intersection of rodent ultrasonic communication and feline hearing, framing the cat's high-frequency sensitivity as a means of eavesdropping on prey signals. While much rodent ultrasonic research focuses on the mice themselves, the implication for predators is that a calling or rustling mouse may broadcast its presence to a listening cat. The survey discusses how the frequencies of these vocalizations relate to the cat's audiogram and to its ability to localize the source. It frames the predator-prey acoustic relationship as one where prey communication carries a hidden cost when a sensitive-eared hunter is nearby. This topic ties feline auditory physiology to the behavioral ecology of hunting small mammals that rely on ultrasonic signals.