Two mice were captured on video engaging in a spirited fight on a London Underground platform as commuters waited for the Tube. The unusual confrontation occurred on the Central Line platform at Oxford Circus on a recent Saturday.
The footage shows the rodents chasing each other in circles, seemingly over a piece of food. A bystander can be heard chuckling as the fight intensifies, with the mice lunging at one another. At one point, the animals stand on their hind legs, appearing to box. The altercation concludes with one mouse emerging victorious and the other retreating.
The scene at Oxford Circus bears a resemblance to photographer Sam Rowley's award-winning image titled 'Station Squabble.' This photograph won the Natural History Museum's Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition in 2020. Rowley spent a week overnight in the Underground network to capture the image, describing how he had to lie on platforms to get the best shot.
Judges for the competition noted that Rowley discovered lying on the platform was the most effective way to photograph the mice. They added that fights over scraps of food dropped by passengers were observed only a few times, as food was abundant, and that such fights typically lasted only a split second before the mice went their separate ways. A passenger captured a similar altercation on video on the Central Line platform at Oxford Circus on Saturday. The video shows the mice chasing each other in circles in a fight over what appears to be a piece of food, reminiscent of a boxing match. The scene at Oxford Circus was remarkably similar to photographer Sam Rowley's award-winning picture of two mice fighting on an Underground platform. 'Station Squabble', as the photograph was titled, beat 48,000 other entries to win the Natural History Museum's Wildlife Photographer of the Year competition in 2020. In order to capture the image, Mr Rowley spent a week overnight in the Tube network where he received 'strange looks from commuters' when he had to lie down on platforms in his attempts to get the best shot. The panel of judges said at the time: 'Sam discovered the best way to photograph the mice inhabiting London's Underground was to lie on the platform and wait.'He only saw them fight over scraps of food dropped by passengers a few times, possibly because it is so abundant. This fight lasted a split second, before one grabbed a crumb and they went their separate ways.'
