Snakes or snakes are vertebrates belonging to the Squamata order, originating in the Cretaceous and inhabiting the whole world, except in Antarctica. They have very particular characteristics, mainly their elongated body and absence of legs (although this last feature is not exclusive to them) is what makes them unmistakable. On the other hand, due to their way of feeding, they are animals that are often feared by people.
This group has a great variety of adaptations and physiological and anatomical modifications that it has undergone throughout its evolution and that are related to its lifestyle. One of them is the ear, whose structure is very different from that of the rest of the reptiles. If you have ever wondered if snakes are deaf, continue reading this article on our site, where we will tell you if snakes can hear and other curiosities.
Can snakes hear?
Surely, many times you have seen in images or documentaries snake charmers who, while playing a musical instrument, hypnotize these animals and make them move to the beat of the melody. Well, this is not the case, since in reality the snakes follow the movement of the flute, which is what attracts their attention. Similarly, despite popular belief, these animals are not deaf and can hear, but unlike other reptiles, they do not have an eardrum or tympanic cavity, so like other structures that have been lost or modified throughout its evolution.
From various investigations, it was found that your middle ear is sensitive to sounds produced both in the air and on the ground. In some species this is more limited, however all are able to sense ground vibrations through the jawbones, so this is directly related to their mode of locomotion, which is by displacements and serpentine movements, that is, stuck to the ground. Another curious fact about the jaw of snakes is that the bones of each half are separated, which is called the hemi-jaw, a fact that also allows them to swallow huge prey. For more details, don't miss this other article: "Do snakes have bones?".
The inner ear of snakes is well developed and has all the organs that allow them to feel sounds, since their skull, through the jaw bones, vibrates when receiving sound waves. In addition, they are capable of capturing low-frequency waves better than higher ones, which pass directly to the skull and then to the inner ear and brain.
How do snakes hear?
As we mentioned, snakes can perceive sounds from vibrations, more precisely from the movement that occurs on surfaces such as sand or earth, even when it happens at a great distance. In this way, they are able to determine the location thanks to the sound waves produced by movement. This occurs because waves are produced on these surfaces, which radiate around them very quickly, allowing the snakes to hunt their prey without fail.
Hearing system of snakes
We have seen that snakes have hearing and that they are not deaf, now, how is the auditory system? We already know that snakes have lost several ear structures and that do not have an external ear or eardrum, but the inner ear is present and is similar to that of other tetrapods (vertebrates with four legs), so the difference is in the way the sound is transmitted. To do this, they have a bone called columella auris in the middle ear (equivalent to the stirrup bone of the middle ear of mammals), which is surrounded by tissue and connects to the fluid present in the inner ear, which is where the vibrations from which they can hear arrive. This is a small, thin bone that is attached to the upper jaw by cartilaginous tissues and ligaments to articulate with the lower jaw. In this way, sound is transmitted to the inner ear through this bone, which is why they have one on each side of the skull.
Compared to humans, for example, who perceive vibrations in the range of 20 to 20,000 Hertz, these animals are capable of detecting around 50 to 1,000 Hertz. Even so, stimuli that reach any part of its body can be transmitted to the columella thanks to the body's tissues, as occurs in aquatic species, for example.
Somatic hearing and inner ear hearing
So, as we said, snakes can detect sounds from the vibrations produced by the movements of their prey or potential predators, and this is called somatic hearing. Therefore, it can be said that these animals have two modes of hearing: through air and ground vibrations and through the inner ear. This helps them to distinguish if what is moving can become prey and, therefore, will define their subsequent behavior, so that they can contextualize the sounds they hear.
Various investigations indicate that the loss of the structures in the inner ear of snakes is due to the fact that they probably had a fossorial or aquatic ancestor, where the jaws maintained the task of holding prey and also receiving the vibrations of your surroundings.
Now that you know that snakes are not deaf, how they perceive sound and how their hearing system works, keep learning more about these fascinating animals with these articles:
- Characteristics of snakes
- Types of snakes
