Two bird species have emerged as serious contenders for the title of the world’s loudest bird after scientists found they can produce calls exceeding 120 decibels — roughly comparable to the sound of a powerful earth drill.
Researchers from the University of Massachusetts Amherst found that the bare-throated bellbird and red-legged seriema can produce calls within an amplitude range of more than 120 decibels.
The findings were published in the scientific journal Evolution on Tuesday.
Evolutionary biologist and co-author João C.T. Menezes told CNN that one of the closest everyday comparisons to the volume produced by the birds is the roar of an earth drill.
The findings put both species in competition with the white bellbird, which was recorded producing a call reaching 125 decibels in 2019 and was subsequently recognised by Guinness World Records as the world’s loudest bird.
The difference in volume between the loudest and quietest recorded bird species is also striking. The sound produced by the two newly studied species is estimated to be around 800 times more intense than that of the dusky hermit, the quietest bird recorded at 64.1 decibels.
However, determining which bird is truly the world’s loudest depends on how the sound is measured.
For example, an individual bare-throated bellbird recorded the loudest single call among the species studied, reaching almost 131 decibels when measured from a distance of one metre.
When researchers instead compared the average loudest calls across the species studied, the red-legged seriema came out on top at almost 121 decibels.
The white bellbird, meanwhile, remains the leader when the average peak volume recorded at any point is used as the measurement, reaching 127 decibels among the six birds tested.
The findings suggest there may not be a single definitive answer to which bird deserves the title, with the result depending on whether researchers compare individual peak calls, average loudest calls or average peak volume.
