Can Bearded Dragons Hear? (Discover The Truth)

Bearded Dragons owners talk to their pets all the time, this is thought to help with bonding and forming trust but can Bearded Dragons actually hear? I’ve done all the research as well as using my own experiences over the years to answer all your questions regarding Bearded Dragons and hearing.

So can Bearded Dragons hear? Bearded Dragons actually have very good hearing. This is necessary to keep safe from predators in the wild and also listen out for movements of small prey.

Read on to find out more about why hearing is important for Bearded Dragons, where their ears are and more.

How Do Bearded Dragons Hear?

Many people wonder if Bearded Dragons can hear because to the naked eye it looks like they don’t even have ears.

This actually isn’t true. They do have ears but they’re not protruding ears like humans.

The external part of a Bearded Dragons ear is actually just a hole and the rest of the ear is internal. The Animal Mom website also backs this up when in short post they wrote about ears and how they work.

You can easily find the ear if you follow the mouth right to the corner with your finger and then move your finger up slightly.

Check out this image below as it shows exactly where the ear is on a Bearded Dragon.

A Bearded Dragon can hear very well and in the wild, they will be programmed to listen out for certain sounds to help them survive and find prey as well as stop them getting eaten.

Below I share exactly why their hearing is so important to them even in captivity.

Why Is Hearing Important For a Bearded Dragon?

There are so many reasons why hearing is important for Bearded Dragons. Some of the reasons may sound obvious while others are quite clever and can really help you to keep your Dragon safe and have a great relationship with them.

Let’s take a look at the reasons why the ability to hear is vital for the health and survival of your Bearded Dragon.

Avoiding Predators

One of the main reasons that a Bearded Dragon needs to have excellent hearing is to ensure they stay out of the reach of predators in the wild.

Cats, foxes, dingos, pythons and birds are all common predators for Bearded Dragons and they all pose different styles of attack.

All these predators are extremely accomplished hunters and any other animal or reptile living in close proximity has to be fully aware and using all its available sensors at all times.

Bearded Dragons reply heavily on their vision to keep away from and even escape from these predators but using their hearing is just as important.

Imagine a Bearded Dragon basking on a rock and a dingo slowly creeps up from behind. The dragon can’t see the dingo so it must rely on its other sensors to keep it safe such as the sense of vibration, smell and obviously hearing.

Catching Prey

Bearded Dragons also need excellent hearing to catch prey. In the wild, it really is survival of the fittest and if you don’t eat then you do will go hungry, it really is as simple as that!

In the wind, they would eat a wide variety of bugs and insects but the food isn’t always easily accessible.

They may have to be very patient and wait for a number of hours before coming across any insects or bugs. It’s this waiting period that makes their ability to hear so important because detecting any small amount of sound nearby could be the difference between going hungry or surviving.

In captivity, a Bearded Dragons use of hearing for catching prey food is obviously less important as they get fed on demand but it’s still something they use to a certain extent.

If you put some crickets in your Dragons tank at feeding time they will primarily use their vision to find the crickets but some of them will hide and that’s when your Dragon will be forced to use their hearing as a hunting tool to find the remaining crickets.

It’s also pretty cool how you can put a box of crickets near their tank (but out of sight) and observe how they can hear only the slightest noise from the box and it triggers the same feeding instinct.

Responding to Their Name

Believe it or not, you can actually teach your Bearded Dragon to respond to its name. This is something that’s often overlooked and if used in the right way yet another reason why their ability to hear is vital even in captivity.

I’ve written a post on Bearded Dragons responding to their owners and in that post, I’ve shared a system for teaching your Bearded Dragon to respond to and learn its name, you can check out the post and the strategy here.

Once you have taught your Dragon to respond to its name then it will almost always come running every time you call its name.

This can be great for both play and bonding with your Dragon. There’s no better feeling than calling your Bearded Dragon and they come running to you and then having a cuddle.

It’s not just a cool little trick though, teaching your Dragon to respond to its name can actually be vital to its safety. Imagine if your Dragon gets lost in your house or in your garden, although this may seem quite rare, I’ve heard of this happening so often and let’s be honest it would be devastating if you couldn’t find them, especially in the garden.

Now imagine if you had taught you Dragon to respond to its name and all you had to do was call and they would come running, how cool would that be?

This is just another way that you can use your Bearded Dragons ability to hear to help you keep them safe even in captivity (and believe me this actually works)

Can a Bearded Dragon Recognize Their Owners Voice?

A Bearded Dragons should be able to recognise their owners’ voice depending on how long you’ve had then and how much you interact with them.

Speaking in the same tone also helps to create a sound that your Bearded Dragon will be able to know and recognize.

Bearded Dragons are very intelligent reptiles and they will also usually recognize the voice of the person who feeds them. This is because they will associate the voice with food.

Most animals and reptiles alike will remember anything much easier and faster when there is something in it for them and the best way that any reptile remembers is through association with food.

Should You Clean a Bearded Dragons Ears?

Because Bearded Dragons have a large hole as the only external part of their ear there’s always the fear that they may get something in it.

Depending on what substrate you use, there’s always the fear of sand or small pieces of bark etc getting lodged in their ear.

(I’ve written a post that shares the best substrates that are perfect for your Bearded Dragon and the ones that you should stay away from, you can check out the substrates complete guide here.)

Honestly, whatever the reason, I would never go and start poking around with your Dragons ears. If you suspect that they’ve got something in there then you really need to go and see a vet or even if you think that they simply need a clean out then don’t risk sticking anything in their ears.

Always and I mean always go and seek the advice of your vet and they will be able to use professional equipment and make sure the job is done properly.

This, however, will be extremely rare as Bearded Dragons are very good at protecting their ears and keeping them safe.

Related questions

Can Bearded Dragons See You? Bearded Dragons can see very well and in full color. They have a broad view as their eyes are on either side of their head. They also rely heavily on their vision when hunting in the wild.

Do Bearded Dragons Have a Third Eye? Bearded Dragons do actually have a third eye. This third eye is located on the top of their head in the form of a small dark dot on the skin. The eye can’t see images but instead sees changes in light and dark.

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