How Do Cows Have Super Senses? | BBC Earth

For livestock, summer is the season for growing fat and taking it easy. But there's something missing from this quintessential British summer. And there she blows. Rain. But can we rely on cows lying down to predict it? The answer is, sometimes. Cows lie down to rest or chew the cud, regardless of the weather. But they also lie down if they're cold. By lying down, they are warming up their bodies. We can see this with a thermal imaging camera. Compare the cow standing in the background with the one in front that has been lying down for a while. The white areas are the warmest. Before it rains, the air temperature often drops. If the cows sense this, they may lie down to keep warm. They're clearly not infallible weather forecasters, but then neither was Michael Fish. So don't replace your barometer with a cow just yet. Cows have an amazing sense of smell. They can detect odours eight kilometres away. It's so strong, they can even detect stress hormones in the urine and dung of fellow herd members. Which must be nice. Their ears are pretty amazing too. These flexible fly swatters can detect a much broader range of sounds than we can. Many dairy farmers report that cows like music. We want to put that to the test. So we've arranged for the Aberystwyth Silver Band to put on a concert for Coffey's Dairy Herd. First of all, a well-known classic. It's not long before one or two stop to listen. Okay, it's hardly the last night of the proms. Maybe a different tempo will turn them on. And now for something completely different. The whole herd takes a step closer to the band. And one cow in particular loves it. Music-loving matriarch, Coffey. Coffey seems to be drawn to this cornet player. Cows are particularly sensitive to high-frequency pitches, finding whistling and screaming very stressful. They are known to like low-frequency noises because they are most like a relaxed mood. But what note do cows prefer? Now they have the audience's attention, we ask the band to experiment with different chords. When the trombones and euphoniums hit a low F major, the herd comes alive. One cow even raises the pitch of her moo to match the chord.