Highest frequency hearing – animal
Who
greater wax moth
What
300 kilohertz (kHz)
Where
Not Applicable ()
When

From experiments in animal hearing limits, we know that the greater wax moth has hearing capable of sensing high-frequency sound up to 300 kHz. This exceeds even bats (who can hear up to 250 kHz) and dolphins (who can hear up to around 160 kHz), and leaves humans far behind (with a typical limit of 20 kHz). The great wax moth not only has an eardrum capable of vibrating at these very high frequencies, but it also has only four neurons associated with sound detection. Monitoring this small group of brain cells was easy for researchers at Strathclyde University in Glasgow, UK, in their recent proof of this exceptional hearing capability.