What Is the Loudest Animal on Earth? And How Was Godzilla's Roar Made?
Quick answer
The sperm whale, with clicks reported up to 236 dB re 1 µPa. That is a water figure, so it can't be compared directly with air figures such as the white bellbird's 125.4 dB. Godzilla's roar is usually traced to Akira Ifukube's rosin-gloved contrabass string, though a sound man on the film disputed that.
In this article
What Is the Loudest Animal on Earth?
By published measurement, the loudest animal on Earth is the sperm whale. A 2003 study off Norway reported clicks up to 236 dB re 1 µPa and called them "by far the loudest of sounds recorded from any biological source."[1] The catch: that is a water figure, so it can't be lined up against a bird in a forest. We ran no tests. What follows is published work, plus arithmetic we label as ours.
Why Can't You Compare Decibels in Water and Air?
A decibel is not a fixed amount of sound. It is a ratio against a reference pressure, and the two worlds use different ones: 1 micropascal (µPa) in water and 20 µPa in air. For sounds of equal intensity, the two readings differ by 61.5 dB. The reference pressures cause 26 dB of that gap, and water's density and sound speed cause the other 35.5 dB.[2]
A dB figure from water and a dB figure from air sit on different scales, so 236 and 125 cannot be compared directly.
Our arithmetic: 236 − 61.5 = 174.5 dB re 20 µPa for the same intensity. A whale wouldn't read that on a meter in air. It only shows the scale's share.
How Do the Real Candidates Compare?
| Animal | Published figure | Air or water | Reference and distance | How it was measured |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sperm whale click[1] | Up to 236 dB | Water | re 1 µPa rms, source level | Hydrophone array; few clicks, assumed on-axis |
| Pistol shrimp snap[5] | Up to 220 dB | Water | re 1 µPa peak-to-peak, at 1 m | Earlier reports, via a meeting abstract |
| Tiger pistol shrimp[7] | 210 dB "SPL" | Not stated | Not stated | Unknown; we could not trace it |
| Blue whale call[3] | 189 ± 3 dB average | Water | re 1 µPa at 1 m, 25 to 29 Hz | Calculated from calibrated seafloor hydrophones |
| Fin whale call[3] | 189 ± 4 dB average | Water | re 1 µPa at 1 m, 15 to 28 Hz | Same study and method |
| Greater bulldog bat[8] | 136 dB average | Air | re 20 µPa rms, at 10 cm | Microphone array, calculated back; maybe 6 dB too high |
| White bellbird[9][10] | 125.4 dB | Air | A-weighted, estimated at 1 m | Calibrated sound level meter, laser rangefinder |
| Cicada, Brevisana brevis[11] | 106.7 dB average | Air | At 50 cm | Record listing; original study unread |
| Mantled howler group roar[12] | About 91 dB | Air | C-weighted, re 20 µPa, corrected to 5 m | Sound level meter, 12 approximate readings |
Newer work gives 188 to 191 dB for blue whale calls and 189 to 192 dB for fin whale calls, depending heavily on assumed whale depth.[4] The shrimp's noise comes from a collapsing bubble, not the closing claw.[6]
Distance matters too. Our rough adjustment to 1 m, using 20 × log10 of the distance ratio: the bat drops to about 116 dB, the cicada to about 101 dB, and the howlers rise to about 105 dB. Among the air figures we could check, the white bellbird leads once distances are evened out, though the weightings still differ. Howlers are often called the loudest land animal, but the bigger numbers online are not what the paper we opened reports.
What Is the Loudest Sound Ever?
The usual answer for the loudest sound ever is the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa, but nobody measured it in decibels at the time. The popular figure comes from Nautilus: a gauge at a Batavia gasworks, 100 miles away, jumped over 2.5 inches of mercury, which "converts to over 172 decibels."[13] Our check: 2.5 inches is about 8,466 pascals, and 20 × log10(8,466 ÷ 0.00002) is about 172.5 dB.
The Royal Society's 1888 report is more careful about that gauge, noting "the somewhat rough character of the trace" and the "inertia of the recorder."[14] A text search of the report found no 2.5-inch figure. Reach is better documented: the sound got to Rodriguez, very nearly 3,000 miles away, "like the distant roars of heavy guns," and many stations logged the pressure wave up to seven times.[14]
Air has a ceiling. The low-pressure part of a wave can't drop below a vacuum, and Nautilus puts that limit at about 194 dB.[13] Our check: 20 × log10(101,325 ÷ 0.00002) is about 194.1 dB, using sea-level pressure. Beyond that you get a shock wave. The whale's 236 doesn't break this limit: it is a different scale in a different medium.
How Was Godzilla's Roar Actually Made?
The Godzilla roar has a documented origin and a live dispute. The fullest first-hand account we could open is composer Akira Ifukube's 1983 essay for a Toho book, now on his official site.[15] He says zoo recordings played at altered speeds failed, because birds still sounded like birds and big beasts like mammals. The answer was, in our translation, a "completely artificial" method: take a low contrabass (double bass) string off its peg, then stroke it lengthwise with rosin-coated leather gloves. The tape was then processed further.
So the glove story traces to Ifukube himself, but a man credited on the film denied it. Accounts split on three points:
- Speed. A 1973 magazine piece recalls Ifukube saying the tape was played at half speed.
- Ingredients. In a 2000 interview, Ifukube said "various things" were layered on top.
- The glove. Sound effects man Ichiro Minawa, in an interview reprinted in a 2023 book, said roughly "we wouldn't do that." He says he and recording engineer Hisashi Shimonaga turned to instruments together.
We read those three only through a research note by double bassist Yu Jidaisho, who gives citations and leaves the conflict unresolved.[16]
Retellings are smoother. NPR quoted Erik Aadahl, a sound designer on the 2014 film, describing a glove coated in pine-tar resin.[17] SlashFilm quotes William Tsutsui's book on an echo chamber.[18] Neither is eyewitness testimony.
How Loud Could a Giant Animal Be?
This is a thought experiment. We found no verified decibel figure for any film's roar. Assume a made-up 20,000-ton animal, and assume sound power grows with body mass, which nothing we read supports.
- From howlers: 105 dB at 1 m (our adjustment, from a group), and 7 kilograms, a number we chose. 20,000,000 ÷ 7 is about 2.9 million, adding about 65 dB. Result: about 170 dB at 1 m, or about 110 dB at 1 kilometer.
- From a bellbird: 125.4 dB at 1 m, and 0.25 kilograms, also our choice. 20,000,000 ÷ 0.25 is 80 million, adding 79 dB. Result: about 204 dB, past the ceiling.
A 34 dB spread from one swapped assumption shows how shaky this is. In the table, a shrimp's reported figure even tops a blue whale's, though the metrics differ.
Myths vs Facts
| Myth | Fact |
|---|---|
| A 236 dB whale is simply louder than a 125 dB bird. | The two figures use different reference pressures and media, so they can't be compared directly.[2] |
| Krakatoa was measured at 172 dB in 1883. | That figure is a modern conversion of a pressure reading from a rough gasworks trace.[13][14] |
| Everyone agrees on the glove. | Ifukube described it, and Minawa is quoted denying it.[15][16] |
What We Still Can't Tell You
We can't say whose memory of the 1954 roar is right. We found no production record from 1954 and no Toho statement beyond the 1983 book. We haven't seen the books or interview behind Minawa's denial. Criterion's essay page refused our reader.
We could not trace the 210 dB tiger pistol shrimp figure, or any howler figure above about 91 dB, to a measurement. The University of Florida's insect records page returned an error, so the cicada figure rests on Guinness. And "loudest" here means loudest among animals someone has measured.
Godzilla is a trademark of Toho Co., Ltd. This article is independent commentary and is not affiliated with or endorsed by Toho.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the loudest animal on Earth?
The sperm whale, by published measurement. A 2003 study reported clicks up to 236 dB re 1 µPa. That figure is from water and uses a different reference pressure from air, so it can't be compared directly with a bird or a monkey.
Why can't decibels in water and air be compared?
Water figures use a 1 µPa reference and air figures use 20 µPa. For sounds of equal intensity, the two readings differ by 61.5 dB, because of those references and because water differs from air in density and sound speed.
What is the loudest sound ever?
The usual answer is the 1883 eruption of Krakatoa. The often-quoted 172 dB is a modern conversion of a pressure reading 100 miles away, not a decibel measurement made at the time.
How was Godzilla's roar made?
Composer Akira Ifukube wrote in 1983 that a low contrabass string was taken off its peg, stroked with rosin-coated leather gloves, then taped and processed. Sound effects man Ichiro Minawa is quoted denying the glove detail, so accounts differ.
References
- Møhl B, Wahlberg M, Madsen PT, Heerfordt A, Lund A. The monopulsed nature of sperm whale clicks. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America (abstract read via PubMed) (2003). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: A limited number of assumed on-axis clicks had source levels up to 236 dB re 1 µPa (rms), recorded with a large-aperture array off Norway in July 2000; 'by far the loudest of sounds recorded from any biological source.'
- Science Tutorial: How does sound in air differ from sound in water?. Discovery of Sound in the Sea (DOSITS). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Water levels reference 1 µPa and air levels 20 µPa; equal-intensity sounds differ by 61.5 dB, of which 26 dB is the reference pressures and 35.5 dB is density and sound speed.
- Širović A, Hildebrand JA, Wiggins SM. Blue and fin whale call source levels and propagation range in the Southern Ocean. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America (abstract read via PubMed) (2007). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Average blue whale call 189 ± 3 dB re 1 µPa at 1 m over 25 to 29 Hz; average fin whale call 189 ± 4 dB over 15 to 28 Hz; calculated from calibrated bottom-moored hydrophones.
- Source Level of Antarctic Blue and Fin Whale Sounds Recorded on Sonobuoys Deployed in the Deep-Ocean Off Antarctica. Frontiers in Marine Science (2021). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Blue whale call types 188 to 191 dB and fin whale call types 189 to 192 dB re 1 µPa; estimates are sensitive to the transmission-loss model and assumed whale depth.
- Versluis M, von der Heydt A, Lohse D, Schmitz B. On the sound of snapping shrimp: the collapse of a cavitation bubble. Journal of the Acoustical Society of America, meeting abstract (University of Twente portal) (2000). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Source levels reported for Alpheus heterochaelis are as high as 220 dB (peak-to-peak) re 1 µPa at 1 m. The abstract reports this from earlier work.
- Versluis M, Schmitz B, von der Heydt A, Lohse D. How snapping shrimp snap: through cavitating bubbles. Science (abstract read via PubMed) (2000). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: The sound is emitted at the cavitation bubble collapse and not on claw closure.
- The Loudest Animals in the World. American Academy of Audiology (2023). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: States 210 dB SPL for tiger pistol shrimp, with no distance, reference or method, citing a magazine gallery. Cited only as the place this figure appears; not traced to a measurement.
- Surlykke A, Kalko EKV. Echolocating bats cry out loud to detect their prey. PLoS ONE (2008). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Noctilio leporinus averaged 136 dB SPL re 20 µPa rms at 10 cm, calculated from a microphone array; levels may be about 6 dB too high because of water-surface reflections.
- Loudest bird call. Guinness World Records. Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: White bellbird call of 125.4 dB (A-weighted), reported in 2019, measured with a calibrated sound level meter.
- Bates S. White bellbirds have the loudest known mating call of any bird. Science News (2019). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Reports about 125 decibels, with laser rangefinder binoculars used so that each call's level could be estimated at one meter.
- Loudest insect. Guinness World Records. Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Brevisana brevis calling song, mean sound-pressure level 106.7 dB at 50 cm.
- Whitehead JM. The effect of the location of a simulated intruder on responses to long-distance vocalizations of mantled howling monkeys, Alouatta palliata palliata. Behaviour (copy read at University of Maryland) (1989). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Approximate sound level of group roars corrected to 5 m was 91.0 dB (SE 1.96, n = 12), measured with a sound level meter, C-weighting, referenced to 20 µPa.
- Bhatia A. The Sound So Loud That It Circled the Earth Four Times. Nautilus (2014). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Batavia gasworks barometer, 100 miles away, spiked over 2.5 inches of mercury, which converts to over 172 decibels; low-pressure regions hitting zero give a limit of about 194 decibels in Earth's atmosphere.
- Symons GJ, ed.. The Eruption of Krakatoa and Subsequent Phenomena: Report of the Krakatoa Committee of the Royal Society. Royal Society (scan at Internet Archive) (1888). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Batavia gasometer trace was rough, with recorder inertia and possible clock error; sounds heard at Rodriguez, very nearly 3,000 English miles away; pressure wave repetition observed up to seven times at many stations.
- Ifukube A. 特撮映画の音楽 (Music for Special Effects Films). Akira Ifukube official site, from 東宝特撮映画全史 (Toho, 1983), pp. 64-65 (1983). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Animal recordings at altered speeds failed; a low contrabass string was removed from its peg and stroked lengthwise with rosin-coated leather gloves, then taped and processed further.
- Jidaisho Y. The 'Voice' of the Original Godzilla and the Double Bass: A 10-Year Research Note on Recreating the Roar. note.com (personal research note) (2026). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Quotes with citations: Akiyama 1973 recollection of half-speed playback; Ifukube's 2000 interview saying various things were layered; Ichiro Minawa denying the glove-and-rosin method and describing a decision with Hisashi Shimonaga to try instruments.
- What's In A Roar? Crafting Godzilla's Iconic Sound. NPR, republished by KUNC (2014). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Erik Aadahl describes a double bass and a leather glove coated in pine-tar resin; the piece says Ifukube suggested an instrument after animal noises failed.
- Dutta D. Godzilla's Original Roar Came From Something Much Stranger Than An Animal. SlashFilm (2024). Accessed Nov 2, 2026.Supports: Quotes William M. Tsutsui's book Godzilla on My Mind on a leather glove across contrabass strings and an echo chamber. A retelling.
Dr. Pippa is a fictional animated character who guides you through the science. She is not a real doctor or researcher.
