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Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minuteDriver Scan →Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errorsFree Scan →Sea lions and fur seals hear a broad spread of frequencies, but there is no single hearing range for every species. Measurements differ by species, individual, test method, and whether sound travels through air or water. The clearest published examples put northern fur seal upper limits at approximately 36 kHz in air and 40 kHz underwater, while a California sea lion showed its greatest underwater sensitivity from 1 to 28 kHz, with peak sensitivity at 16 kHz. A 2026 study of two Australian sea lions found greatest in-air sensitivity at 3.2 kHz, but the equipment could not test above 20 kHz, so that study did not establish an upper cutoff.
Those figures describe measured responses in particular animals, not a universal limit for all sea lions or fur seals. Hearing sensitivity, measured frequency range, and the loudest frequency an animal can detect are different things.
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The numbers, side by side
Sea lions and fur seals belong to the otariid group, but published audiograms come from particular species and small samples. This table keeps each result tied to its medium, date, and limitation.
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1Scan for outdated or missing drivers - takes under a minute2Clear out junk files and repair common Windows errors3Fix the driver behind crashes, sound loss and screen glitches| Animal and study | Medium and sample | Reported finding | Important limitation |
|---|---|---|---|
| Australian sea lion (2026) | Air; two adult females | Greatest sensitivity at 3.2 kHz; one animal’s 20 dB best-sensitivity bandwidth was 600 Hz–9 kHz, while the other extended from about 600 Hz to at least 20 kHz. Thresholds at the best frequency were 13 and 14 dB re 20 µPa. | Testing equipment stopped at 20 kHz, so the upper hearing limit was not measured. |
| California sea lion (Schusterman, Balliet and Nixon, 1971) | Underwater; behavioral audiometry | Range of maximal sensitivity from 1 to 28 kHz, with best sensitivity at 16 kHz. Tones were tested at 13 frequencies between 250 Hz and 64 kHz. | Very intense tones could produce responses as high as 192 kHz, but that is not the animal’s normal or most sensitive range. |
| Northern fur seal (Moore and Schusterman, 1987) | Air and underwater; two young females | Approximate upper limits of 36 kHz in air and 40 kHz underwater. In the 500 Hz–32 kHz interval, the seals were more sensitive to airborne sounds than the other pinnipeds tested. | The sample was small and the reported limits are approximate study findings, not fixed values for every fur seal. |
| Otariids as summarized by NOAA (2003) | Review of existing measurements | Review-level generalizations place underwater peak sensitivities around 15–30 kHz and underwater upper frequencies around 35–40 kHz; aerial peak sensitivity is shifted below 10 kHz. | These are broad review statements, not a measurement of every sea lion or fur seal species. |
Frequency is not the same as hearing sensitivity
Frequency is the number of pressure cycles in a sound wave per second. It is measured in hertz (Hz); 1 kHz equals 1,000 Hz. Lower frequencies sound deeper, while higher frequencies sound sharper, but frequency alone does not tell you whether an animal can detect a sound easily.
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An audiogram plots the quietest sound an animal detects at each tested frequency. The lowest point on that plot marks the animal’s greatest sensitivity. An animal can respond to a frequency outside that highly sensitive region if the sound is sufficiently loud. That is why a response at an extreme frequency should not automatically be labeled part of the animal’s everyday hearing range.
The California sea lion illustrates the distinction. Its underwater audiogram identified a main sensitivity band and a best frequency, yet the same experiment obtained responses to tones far above that band when the tones were intense. The extreme response demonstrates detection under those test conditions; it does not mean the sea lion hears that frequency as well as it hears its sensitivity peak.
What northern fur seals hear
Airborne hearing
Moore and Schusterman’s 1987 study tested two young female northern fur seals and reported an approximate upper frequency limit in air. Within the tested span from 500 Hz to 32 kHz, the fur seals were more sensitive to airborne sounds than the other pinnipeds included in that experiment. “More sensitive” means they detected quieter sounds at those frequencies relative to the comparison animals under the study’s conditions; it does not mean that every northern fur seal, or every fur seal species, shares the same threshold.
Underwater hearing
The same study reported a somewhat higher approximate upper limit underwater. The difference is one reason a single number should not be used for both environments. The pressure reference, calibration, and acoustic conditions used for air and water measurements differ, so the two thresholds cannot be compared as if they were readings from one identical scale.
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How much confidence to place in the limits
The northern fur seal findings are valuable direct measurements, but they are from two young animals and an older study. The appropriate wording is “about” or “approximately,” because the evidence does not justify extra decimal places or a universal cutoff for the species.
What California sea lions hear underwater
Most sensitive frequencies
Schusterman, Balliet and Nixon’s 1971 underwater audiogram found the California sea lion’s maximal sensitivity across a broad band from 1 to 28 kHz, with the best sensitivity at 16 kHz. The experiment sampled 13 frequencies between 250 Hz and 64 kHz, so the reported band reflects the frequencies and levels tested rather than a claim that every possible frequency was measured continuously.
Why the 192 kHz figure is often misunderstood
The study also elicited responses to tones as high as 192 kHz when the sounds were relatively intense. That result is a high-level detection observation, not a normal hearing range and not the frequency at which the animal is most sensitive. Presenting 192 kHz without its sound-level qualification would give a misleading picture of California sea lion hearing.
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What the result says about underwater listening
This experiment directly demonstrates underwater hearing in a California sea lion. It does not, by itself, establish the hearing limits of Australian sea lions, northern fur seals, or other otariids. Species, age, training procedure, and sound field can all affect an audiogram.
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What the 2026 Australian sea lion study adds
Peak sensitivity in air
A 2026 in-air study tested two adult female Australian sea lions. Both were most sensitive at 3.2 kHz, where measured thresholds were 13 and 14 dB re 20 µPa. The shared peak indicates a similar frequency preference in these two individuals, not a population-wide constant.
Best-sensitivity bandwidths
The two animals differed in the width of their most sensitive region. One had a reported 20 dB bandwidth from 600 Hz to 9 kHz. The other extended from about 600 Hz to at least 20 kHz. “At least” is essential: the test system could not produce or measure frequencies above 20 kHz, so the second animal may hear higher frequencies, but this experiment cannot say where its sensitivity ends.
Why this is not an upper-limit study
An equipment ceiling is not a biological cutoff. Because testing stopped at 20 kHz, the Australian study establishes the in-air peak and the measured bandwidths only within that window. It cannot be used to claim that Australian sea lions stop hearing at 20 kHz.
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Repair common Windows errors and clear accumulated junk for a smoother, more stable PC - no reinstall needed.Free scan · no reinstallCan sea lions and fur seals hear underwater?
Yes. Direct underwater audiometry has measured hearing in California sea lions, and the northern fur seal study reported underwater frequency limits. The measurements also show that hearing characteristics depend on the medium. A review by NOAA in 2003 summarized otariid underwater peak sensitivities as roughly 15–30 kHz and underwater upper frequencies as roughly 35–40 kHz, while describing aerial otariid peak sensitivity as shifted below 10 kHz.
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Those NOAA figures are useful orientation points, not species-wide specifications. The direct measurements in the table should take priority when discussing a named species, because they identify the animals, test medium, and method.
Why air and water numbers must be compared carefully
Sound pressure is referenced differently in air and underwater acoustics, and the physical properties of the two media change how sound fields are generated, calibrated, and received. An audiogram’s decibel value therefore carries its reference pressure and test setup with it.
For a general comparison, it is safe to say that measured frequency sensitivity and upper limits differ between air and water. It is not safe to subtract the air threshold from the underwater threshold or rank the media by a raw decibel number unless the reference units and acoustic conditions have been explicitly aligned.
How scientists measure hearing in these animals
Behavioral audiometry
Behavioral audiometry trains an animal to perform a defined response when it detects a tone. The experimenter varies frequency and sound level, then estimates the quietest level that reliably produces the trained response. This measures hearing through the animal’s perception and behavior, rather than relying only on an electrical signal from the ear.
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Audiograms and thresholds
The results are plotted as an audiogram: frequency on one axis and detection threshold on the other. A low threshold means greater sensitivity at that frequency. The shape of the curve reveals a best-sensitivity region, while the tested frequency span determines which possible limits can be discussed.
What a study can and cannot establish
- A measured threshold applies to the tested animal, equipment, sound field, and response criterion.
- An upper limit is supported only when frequencies above the claimed limit were actually tested and failed to produce responses under the study’s conditions.
- If equipment stops at a frequency ceiling, the result is “at least” that high, not proof that hearing ends there.
- Small samples cannot capture variation caused by age, sex, individual anatomy, training history, or health.
How far can a sea lion or fur seal hear?
Frequency data do not provide a hearing distance. Distance depends on the source’s output level and spectrum, background noise, reflections, absorption, water depth, wind, and the animal’s detection threshold at the specific frequency. None of the cited audiograms supplies a universal distance at which a sea lion or fur seal can hear a sound.
An audiogram answers “how quiet a tone can be at the animal’s location,” not “how many metres away the source can be.” To calculate a distance for a particular call or machine, you would need a source level, transmission-loss model, environmental measurements, and a threshold in the same acoustic reference system.
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What readers should conclude
- There is no single hearing range that applies to every sea lion and fur seal.
- Air and underwater results are separate measurements and should not be merged into one list of frequencies.
- Best sensitivity is a narrower concept than the highest frequency detected with a loud tone.
- The strongest species-specific examples are small-sample studies: two young female northern fur seals, one California sea lion in the 1971 audiogram, and two adult female Australian sea lions in 2026.
- For Australian sea lions, the latest in-air study identifies a peak at 3.2 kHz but leaves the upper cutoff unknown because testing ended at 20 kHz.
- For broad context only, the NOAA review places many otariid underwater peaks in the mid-kilohertz range and aerial peaks below 10 kHz, while direct species measurements provide the more precise evidence.
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