There’s nothing like heading out to the Paul Boorman Trail with a pair of binoculars, a trusty notebook and the strong urge to spot as many birds as possible. For many birders, listening for songs and calls is just as important as spotting a bird perched in a tree. Hearing loss can cause you to miss out on some of those sounds, but, thankfully, hearing aids may be able to help you hear bird calls more clearly and stay connected to what’s happening around you.
The Perks of Hearing Aids
Three benefits of hearing aids during bird watching:
- Amplifying birdsong. Not every bird call is loud and easy to recognize. Many birds produce high-frequency sounds that can be especially challenging for people with hearing loss. Hearing aids amplify sounds based on your individual frequency needs. By providing access to sounds that have disappeared, they may help you pick up more of the details in birdsong.
- They help you locate birds. Birders rely on the ability to identify where a sound is coming from. Your ears help you figure out the direction of a sound by comparing the minute time difference between when the sound arrives at each ear—called the interaural level difference.[1] When hearing loss affects one or both ears, it may become more difficult to tell exactly where a sound originated. Using two (binaural) hearing aids will give your brain sound information from both sides, helping you determine the direction of a bird’s song or call. Once you know where to look, your binoculars can take it from there.
- Helping you study. Learning to identify birds by their calls is a skill you can develop over time. And you don’t necessarily have to wait until your next outdoor adventure to practice. If your hearing aids have Bluetooth® connectivity, pair them with your smartphone and listen to recordings of different bird calls to practice recognizing them from the comfort of your home. The next time you head outside, you may find that those familiar sounds are easier to recognize.
Schedule a Hearing Aid Appointment
Don’t let hearing loss keep you from enjoying every aspect of bird watching. If you don’t have hearing aids, we can fit you with new devices to bring your favorite hobby back to life. If you already have hearing aids but they aren’t providing enough amplification, call SoundLogic for a repair and service appointment.
[1] Zheng, Y., Swanson, J., Koehnke, J., & Guan, J. (2022). Sound localization of listeners with normal hearing, impaired hearing, hearing aids, bone-anchored hearing instruments, and cochlear implants: A review. American Journal of Audiology, 31(3), 819–834. https://doi.org/10.1044/2022_AJA-22-00006