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Loudest Bird
ANSELMO D’AFFONSECA, INSTITUTO NACIONAL DE PESQUISAS DA AMAZONIA
Brazil’s Amazon rainforest is home to the world’s loudest known bird. Scientists recently found that the ear-splitting calls male white bellbirds use to attract mates reach 125 decibels. That’s louder than a chain saw and three times noisier than the previous record holder for loudest bird, the screaming piha.
“Usually, when animals make loud sounds, it is for long-distance communication,” says Jeff Podos. He’s a biologist at the University of Massachusetts Amherst who helped record the white bellbird’s call. But the bird shrieks at potential mates that are sitting right next to it, he says. “We’re working to figure out why.”
Sound intensity is measured in decibels (dB). Sounds louder than 85 dB can damage a person’s hearing if they go on for too long. How does the male white bellbird’s call stack up against common noises, like a motorcycle or an airplane taking off?
SOURCES: CENTER FOR HEARING AND COMMUNICATION; JEFF PODOS
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