Answer: Roosters

If you’ve ever been woken up at the crack of dawn by a rooster, then you can certainly attest to how loud they are. The average volume of a rooster crowing is around 130 decibels and some roosters can peak at 143 decibels, volumes that are, respectively, like standing within 50 feet (15 meters) of a jet taking off and standing in the middle of an active aircraft carrier.

How then, does a rooster not deafen itself with its own abrasive crowing? The annoying (but clearly clever) animal has evolved to plug its own ears when it opens its mouth wide for a booming crow. As the rooster fully opens its mouth, the ear canal and the soft tissue inside it both change shape and move. At peak volume, the rooster’s ear canal is reduced in size by 25 percent and soft tissue moves to cover 50 percent of the eardrum.

Photo by John Went/Wikimedia.