They Do Not Have Ears But They Can Hear !

You ever try whispering around a snake?

Don’t bother. It won’t help.

Snakes don’t have external ears. No earholes. No flaps. No tiny earbuds tucked behind the jawline.

But can they hear? Oh yes.

Just not the way you and I do.

How They Hear Without Ears

At a glance, snakes seem like they’re missing a key piece of gear. No visible ears means no hearing, right?

- Not exactly.

Instead of picking up sound through the air, snakes hear through vibration. The lower jawbone connects to a small bone inside the skull called the columella. That bone links up with the inner ear.

So when the ground shakes—say, from your boots hitting the floor—that vibration runs through the jawbone, up to the skull, and straight into the ear.

It’s a little like using a stethoscope on a floorboard. Not glamorous. But it works.

What They Actually Hear

They don’t pick up conversations. Or music. Or high-pitched dog whistles.

Snakes specialize in low-frequency vibrations. Think 50 to 1,000 hertz. That includes footsteps, small animals rustling nearby, or even deep thunder in the distance.

The higher-pitched stuff—like chirping birds or your favorite ringtone—barely registers. They're tuned to the bass.

Why This Matters in the Wild

That bone-conducted hearing gives snakes a real edge.

A predator moving nearby? Snake knows. Dinner scurrying through dry leaves? Snake knows that too.

Even if the animal isn’t visible, its movement sends vibrations through the ground. The snake doesn’t need to see it or hear it in the traditional sense. It can feel the sound.

And that’s often enough to strike or slither away.

A Little Story

I once visited a reptile center where a staff member vacuumed near a python’s enclosure. The python didn’t flinch at voices, kids yelling, or music playing over the speakers.

But once that vacuum hit the carpet?

The snake recoiled like someone flipped on a light in a dark room.

Not because of the sound, but because of the shake.

What About Water Snakes?

Aquatic snakes deal with sound a little differently. In water, sound travels faster and carries farther.

Water snakes can detect ripples and vibrations caused by swimming prey or a shift in current. They’re not exactly sonar-equipped, but that same jawbone trick helps them stay tuned in—even underwater.

Basically, water just gives them a different channel to monitor.

Do Loud Noises Bother Them?

Only the rumbly ones.

Snakes won’t flinch at your voice. But if you drop something heavy, slam a door, or play music with a heavy beat, they’ll likely react.

Again, it’s not about volume. It’s about what travels through the floor.

Their entire body is a sensor. They don’t miss much.

Somewhere along the evolutionary timeline, snakes gave up external ears. Too much hassle, probably. Especially when you’re squeezing into burrows or slinking under rocks.

But nature didn’t leave them deaf.

Instead, it rerouted their hearing system. Trimmed the extras. Kept only what mattered.

Now, they hear the world from the ground up.

Can They Hear Each Other?

Not really.

Snakes don’t use sound to communicate. No chatter. No calls. Hissing is about as vocal as they get—and that’s usually a warning, not a conversation.

Instead, they rely on scent. A snake flicks its tongue, picks up chemical cues from the air, and reads the situation like a walking mood ring.

Or slithering one, rather.

Snakes don’t have ears. But they still hear—through their jaws, their bones, and the dirt beneath them.

They don’t listen like we do. They feel sound. They sense it. And in their silent, sneaky way, they stay tuned in to everything that matters.

So next time you walk past a snake and it doesn’t move?

Don’t assume it didn’t hear you.

It just didn’t feel the need to respond.