Moms' learned fear of snakes gets inherited by offspring in a critically endangered mouse, biologists discover

Article excerpt

Conservationists often raise the young of endangered species in captivity before releasing them into suitable habitats as adults. The benefits are obvious: survival to adulthood is typically high, as captive animals are safe from predators and food scarcity. Unfortunately, a lack of exposure to enemies in early life may become a drawback later, if the released individuals have never learned to recognize and avoid their predators.