Male mice actively direct their urine at nearby females, and this urine reliably contains unconjugated oestradiol (E 2 ) and other steroids. Giving inseminated females minute doses of exogenous E 2 , either systemically or intranasally, can cause failure of blastocyst implantation. Giving juvenile females minute doses of exogenous E 2 promotes measures of reproductive maturity such as uterine mass. Here we show that tritium-labelled E 2 ( 3 H-E 2 ) can be traced from injection into novel male mice to tissues of cohabiting inseminated and juvenile females. We show the presence of 3 H-E 2 in male excretions, transmission to the circulation of females and arrival in the female reproductive tract. In males, 3 H-E 2 given systemically was readily found in reproductive tissues and was especially abundant in bladder urine. In females, 3 H-E 2 was found to enter the system via both nasal and percutaneous routes, and was measurable in the uterus and other tissues. As supraoptimal E 2 levels can both interfere with blastocyst implantation in inseminated females and promote uterine growth in juvenile females, we suggest that absorption of male-excreted E 2 can account for major aspects of the Bruce and Vandenbergh effects.