Humans and other mammals have an automatic protection against loud sounds, especially from our own voice which would otherwise be well over the pain threshold internally. When we vocalize, the brain automatically pulls a little muscle (tensor tympani) that restricts the movement of the eardrum. Another muscle restricts the movement of the stapes where it enters the cochlea. Without looking it up, I'm pretty sure birds are built the same way.
Here the Carolina Wren is loudest (at least according to my non-scientific conclusions). Hard to imagine a louder bird but this blows it out of the water
Great post, Maja! When we were in Costa Rica, we got to see Three-wattled Bellbirds. A female perched near a male and when he turned toward her and opened his mouth to “sing,” she leaned away and clenched her eyes shut!
Hi Tara, thanks for your kind comment and for sharing this story! It seems like the White bellbird females react similarly. In the paper, the authors reported the following:
"On several occasions we observed female white bellbirds joining males on their display perches. In this context, the male first adopted a head-down/tail-down posture, back towards the female, wattle fully distended. He then sang only his higher amplitude (Type 2) song, swiveling dramatically mid-song to face the female head-on for the song’s second note. Females in these interactions always retreated as or just before the male sang, yet still experienced songs at very close range, sometimes within four meters or less."
Seems like the males really go overboard with their "song" sometimes. 😄
Humans and other mammals have an automatic protection against loud sounds, especially from our own voice which would otherwise be well over the pain threshold internally. When we vocalize, the brain automatically pulls a little muscle (tensor tympani) that restricts the movement of the eardrum. Another muscle restricts the movement of the stapes where it enters the cochlea. Without looking it up, I'm pretty sure birds are built the same way.
Here the Carolina Wren is loudest (at least according to my non-scientific conclusions). Hard to imagine a louder bird but this blows it out of the water
Always enjoy your posts! So often I say to myself “I had no idea” when I’ve finished one.
Thank you very much for your kind comment! I'm very glad you're enjoying my posts. 😊
Great post, Maja! When we were in Costa Rica, we got to see Three-wattled Bellbirds. A female perched near a male and when he turned toward her and opened his mouth to “sing,” she leaned away and clenched her eyes shut!
Hi Tara, thanks for your kind comment and for sharing this story! It seems like the White bellbird females react similarly. In the paper, the authors reported the following:
"On several occasions we observed female white bellbirds joining males on their display perches. In this context, the male first adopted a head-down/tail-down posture, back towards the female, wattle fully distended. He then sang only his higher amplitude (Type 2) song, swiveling dramatically mid-song to face the female head-on for the song’s second note. Females in these interactions always retreated as or just before the male sang, yet still experienced songs at very close range, sometimes within four meters or less."
Seems like the males really go overboard with their "song" sometimes. 😄