How Do Snakes Hear Ssssssounds?

For many years, scientists believed that snakes couldnt hear because they lack outer ears and eardrums. Herpetologists (researchers who study reptiles) believed snakes gathered information about lunch and their surroundings through smell, taste and special heat-sensing organs near the nose.

However, further research indicated that snakes could, indeed, hear but researchers couldnt pinpoint exactly how. Recently, scientists determined how by using nautical (boat) physics. The lower jaw of the snake is essentially a rigid cylinder, researcher Bruce Young explained. So, in that respect, its not that different from a ship [also a rigid cylinder].

Researchers used the same calculation used to measure a ships movement in water to model a snakes jaw as it moves through sand or below ground. A ship can move in six different directions called heave, roll, yaw, pitch, etc. And a snakes jaw moves in precisely those same directions.

When sound vibrations are picked up through the snakes jawbone, they travel to a cochlear mechanism within the snakes auditory system and there, sound vibrations are converted to electrical impulses and transmitted to the brain. Thats how the snake knows that a mouse, aka lunch, is tip-toeing behind that sage brush.

The result? Snakes hear through the jaw bone and through a traditional inner ear. In essence, snakes have two, distinct hearing mechanisms.

Its called bone conductive hearing and it occurs in snakes and humans.

Technology improves bone conductivity in humans

For some humans the conductive part of their hearing (outer and middle ear) is not always present or functional; however their inner ear and nerves are working normally. Certain diseases or anomalies may cause a human to be born with the outer portion of the ear absent or the ear canal may be so narrow that sound is unable to make its way down to the eardrum.

So if snakes use their jawbone, what method could humans use to hear with bone conduction?

Cochlear Americas, a leading edge designer and maker of implantable hearing devices, manufacturers an implantable hearing device that uses direct bone conduction of sound waves to stimulate the hearing nerves delivering electrical impulses to the auditory centers of the brain.

Called the Baha System, the device is designed for people with conductive and mixed hearing loss. The Baha creates a path that by-passes outer and middle ear damage, delivering sound vibrations directly to the cochlea for processing and conversion to electrical impulses.

Is this the solution youve been looking for?

If you have suffered from conductive and mixed hearing loss for many years and are unable to benefit from traditional hearing aids, there is only one way to find out if you are a candidate.

Make an appointment with a hearing healthcare professional and have your hearing evaluated.

Hear better, snake style, with a bone conduction hearing device.

Itssssssensssational.

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