The swimming activity of the staggerer mutant mouse

Four experiments investigated the swimming behaviour of staggerer mutant mice. The results partially confirmed previous reports that a mouse's swimming is unaffected by the staggerer mutation. In terms of speed and distance there are indeed no measurable differences between normal and staggerer mice, when first placed in the water. The stagger's resistance was however shown to be much lower than a normal's and the genetic difference was also associated with different styles of swimming. Furthermore, whereas the normal mouse's swimming behaviour evolves with increased time in the water, the staggerer's remains constant. The differences are interpreted on the basis of abnormal novelty reactions by the staggerer mutants. Thus, swimming appears to be a better tool for investigating the higher-level cognitive functions of this mutant than terrestrial locomotion.