| Since reading The Wind in the | | canaries sing so well: they take |
| Willows at the age of seven I’ve | | 30 mini-breaths per second and |
| had a soft spot for moles. | | these breaths are synchronised |
| Friends once built a fake ‘mole | | with each syllable or note |
| hill’ outside my door with a | | enabling the canary to sing |
| birthday card on it. So it was | | effortlessly for several minutes. |
| with delight that I discovered | | This book goes deeper than |
| more about moles in Bats Sing, | | offering titbits of behaviour. It |
| Mice Giggle. | | makes you question what we |
| Moles live alone in tunnels. | | mean by the phrase ‘human |
| They don’t like other moles and | | nature’ by offering evidence that |
| if they bump into another, a fight | | our abilities to perceive, think, |
| starts. They only get together to | | feel, sing, dance, giggle and |
| mate and the female stays with | | solve problems emerge from |
| its pups for 12 weeks. After that | | and are shared by other |
| the pup seals its connection to | | animals. |
| the maternal tunnel and digs its | | The two Washington-based |
| own. Then the two keep in touch | | scientists draw upon the work of |
| via ‘mole telephone’. One mole | | many other scientists to reveal |
| bangs the top of its head | | animal secrets. They have |
| against the roof of the tunnel | | produced a study which is both |
| and the other picks up the | | accessible to the lay reader and |
| vibratory message by pressing | | acceptable to the scientific |
| its cheek and lower jaw against | | community. |
| the wall. | | |
| I now also know why | | Linda Christmas |
