Do animals believe in God? Do they only have one soul? Do they really mourn their deceased fellows? So many questions that this top will not answer. On the other hand, there is a chance to scrape some useless information on the species which have planned everything when taking care of their dead.
1. Vigil, funeral procession and tribute to the elephants
Behind their clumsy looks, these pachyderms hide big sensitive hearts, especially when it comes to the disappearance of one of their loved ones. In Kenya in 2006, a dying female was visited during her last days by other members of her “tribe”. These “tributes” continued even 5 days after his death. Elsewhere, in India, a group of elephants formed a funeral procession headed by the mother carrying the lifeless body of her calf. Finally, it would seem that elephants show a particular interest in the bones of their congeners, while they ignore those of other species.
2. Post-mortem grooming, funeral wake and carrying the dead in primates
We are not descendants of primates for nothing. Some species thus share with humans the same relationship to death, between grief, grooming the deceased loved one and funeral wake. Researchers have also observed parents carrying their dead child in their arms for several hours and sometimes even days until exhaustion. Proof that mourning and sadness are universal.
3. Songs, dances and laying of flowers among magpies and crows
Corvids – in a single word – brings together more than 130 species of birds including crows, ravens, magpies and passerines. The latter would have the habit of gathering in a circle around the body of a deceased congener, emitting songs during what looks like a funeral, sometimes even placing grass there as a chrysanthemum. Their behavior was studied by a professor of evolutionary biology who hypothesized that these gatherings were an opportunity for members of the same species to try to determine the cause of death and the potential danger that would threaten the group.
4. Watching, singing and transporting bodies among cetaceans
In dolphins, whales and other killer whales, when a member of the group dies, the others begin choreographies and songs around his body. These ceremonies can last several hours, sometimes with relays to protect the body of the deceased from possible predators. Off the coast of Vancouver, a mother orca had kept her deceased calf on the surface for 17 days, covering a whopping 1,600 km!
5. Depression and mating only with other widowers in geese
Geese are particularly romantic beings. Not only do they remain faithful for life to their spouse, but if the latter dies, they stop eating for several days, before rejoining, heartbroken, the rest of the group. If the bereaved goose wishes to mate again, it can only do so with one of its congeners, also a widower. Next to the geese, the Mormons would pass for big sexual cranks.
6. Undertakers among the ants…
We don’t mess with death among ants. As soon as a congener dies, fellow workers, a sort of undertakers in the service of the anthill, are responsible for clearing the corpse to a mortuary room away, in particular to avoid the risk of disease proliferation.
7. …and the bees
When a bee dies, a fellow bee brushes it with its antennae to check that it is not playing dead for fun, then it grabs it with its jaws to place it outside the hive. These undertaker bees would be made up of older workers who would represent up to 2% of the population of a hive.
8. Termites eat their dead
“It’s good grandpa is ready, it’s time to sit down to eat!” Termites don’t like to waste leftovers. As good ecologists, they go so far as to eat the corpses of their deceased! Note that not all termites practice this cannibalistic diet. Some, more respectful, decide to simply bury their dead rather than making dishes in sauce. Everyone has their delirium.