Physical Properties of Bedding Materials Determine the Marble Burying Behavior of Mice (C57BL/6J)

The marble burying test is a simple behavioral psychopharmacology task in which rodents, especially rats and mice, are exposed to glass marbles laying on thick bedding materials. This test has been widely used to assess the effects of a variety of psychoactive drugs. Although the marble burying test clearly reflects drug efficacy, many aspects of the behavior itself remain unclear. In the present study, we assessed the effects of different bedding materials and the number of glass marbles presented on the marble burying behavior of mice (C57BL/6J). Six (bedding materials)  three (number of glass marbles) factorial experiments revealed that the number of marbles buried correlates closely with the quality of the bedding material. Our results provide a basic understanding of certain factors that govern marble burying behavior, which may be applicable to behavioral sciences including psychopharmacology.