Birds hold 'funerals' for dead

Originally posted by ErroneousDylan

Birds hold 'funerals' for dead

www.bbc.co.uk

Some birds, it seems, hold funerals for their dead.

When western scrub jays encounter a dead bird, they call out to one another and stop foraging.

The jays then often fly down to the dead body and gather around it, scientists have discovered.

The behaviour may have evolved to warn other birds of nearby danger, report researchers in California, who have published the findings in the journal Animal Behaviour.

(visit the link for the full news article)

Why can't they just be sad?

I have blue Jays in my back yard and have heard them mourn.

reply to post by Kandinsky

...It seems there's a reluctance to get down and dirty with the connotations.

Uh huh, seems to be. Maybe we should follow the money instead of psychology. Starting with the food industry perhaps?

Originally posted by ErroneousDylan
I have heard about this with elephants, but never a species of bird.

The Corvid has been looooooooooong known to hold funerals for it's dead. I've known this since i was a child. I had a mail order wildlife book when i was a kid that talked extensively about the Corvid family.

Why is this just now news?

The corvid family consists of crows, ravens, rooks, jackdaws, jays, magpies, treepies, choughs and nutcrackers (from Wiki).

Funerals is only ONE of the incredibly intelligent activities this family of birds carries out.

In the story of Noah and the Ark, Noah first sent out a Raven to see if dry land was out there, and the Raven came back and LIED !! (in some stories). In other translations, the Raven REFUSED to go out of fear that his species would be wiped out.

very clever birds ....

It's true... all birds within the corvid family hold funerals for their dead. Corvids (crows, ravens, ...) are highly social and have a society with its own pecking order. The corvids are the most ritualistic about their funerals.

Almost all birds are monogamous with their bird wife/husband... and stay within each other's call all their lives. Sometimes, they get separated for too long and they can't call each other on cell phones so they find a new monogamous spouse. Other times, the separated bird couple mourn each other and... studies suggest they go through depressions missing each other (even to the point of dying of a broken heart).

Pretty fascinating. The Creator is a Genius.

reply to post by ErroneousDylan


certain species of birds are extremely smart.

I'd imagine if we opened up our eyes a bit , we would notice more "human like " behaviors in many different animals.

I recently had a Starling in my backyard, sick and unable to fly. It just sat there in the grass. I'd toss out some bread and it would hop over to eat some along with the sparrows that congregated.

Later on a group of Starlings congregated around the sick bird, keeping it company and protecting it, i imagine. It later died and the Starlings eventually flew off. They did this for two days.

Originally posted by Kandinsky
reply to post by ErroneousDylan

 

As we get further ahead in consciousness studies and empathy, I honestly believe society will see animals in a new light. It won't stop some of them from being tasty. What might happen is we'll begin to see consciousness, sentience, empathy in broader terms than yes and no.

I would be very happy on the day people stopped putting creatures that can fly into cages and taking them away from their social groups and right to build homes, choose their own mates and live a free life!

Originally posted by Char-Lee
I would be very happy on the day people stopped putting creatures that can fly into cages and taking them away from their social groups and right to build homes, choose their own mates and live a free life!

It'd be nice if people stopped doing that to people too.

reply to post by ErroneousDylan


Well, of course. Only atheists and smug scientific types ever thought that the biological world was always just random and meaningless. As if all lifeforms - except the almighty human - are just biological machines of some sort. It's taken this long for science to figure otherwise. That says a lot about us...

reply to post by winofiend


Animals are bred for one purpose only and that is to be eaten!!

I'm not chatting about wildlife, i'm chatting about Farm produce!

As for intelligent birds? Of course they are intelligent... I happen to have great fondship of birds... they are a great species (and the female kind (well, some anyway )) . I can tell there is a lot more to them than meets the eye

My dog killed a bird at one time and as soon as that happened. 100 of birds were ready to devourer her. Totally looked like "The Birds" movie.

Originally posted by ErroneousDylan
I have heard about this with elephants, but never a species of bird. And though there are specific survival reasons for gathering around recently deceased animals, elephants are also known for having an emotional system closest to humans.

It would seem that this funeral system that the birds are implementing is very similar to the one elephants do so, there is a possibility that these birds may also have an emotional system. Of course, it still serves a purpose for protecting themselves and others but it would seem that is not what it's all about entirely.

In this thread by smyleegrl: Animals Are As With-it as Humans (Animals Are Conscious) they are coming to the conclusion that animals have a similar consciousness to humans, perhaps they have a similar emotional system and are empathetic/sympathetic. I'm sure most of you will agree that domestic pets can feel when you're upset but maybe it's not limited to them. =)

www.bbc.co.uk
(visit the link for the full news article)

edit on 1-9-2012 by ErroneousDylan because: (no reason given)

edit on 1-9-2012 by ErroneousDylan because: Typos.

What?

Human are not the only organism that can express emotion.

You should know humans are the only organism that can exhibit psychopathy,narcissism and sociopathy.

I wonder if some birds try to sell them insurance to pay for overpriced funerals.

Originally posted by ollncasino

Originally posted by SpearMint
I think they're inspecting it rather than mourning a loved one, funeral is probably the wrong word.

I believe elephants could possibly do it, they're extremely intelligent.

Certainly elephants are very clever. They can even paint pictures of other elephants.

An Elephant Painting an Elephant

They aren't even beyond creating a little elephant porn...

edit on 1-9-2012 by ollncasino because: (no reason given)

Unfortunately for the elephants, they are taught by repeat and repeat methods to do this for the pleasure of tourists and i really doubt they are having fun doing this all day for a small treat when they could have a LIFE!

Originally posted by winofiend

Originally posted by Kandinsky
reply to post by winofiend

 

It's hard to say. A similar controversy to the Abolitionist Movement could occur as the right to life and quality of life would be disputed in similar ways. In the West particularly, we'd be very resistant to the idea and the evidence. Probably wouldn't stop us eating bacon, but guilt might take the greatness from the taste. Sheesh...

Hmm, long term perhaps, there are still people today living opulent lavish lifestyles, even in the west, who dine on meals made simply because they are exotic or rare. Adding intelligent into the mix, I see them hardly discouraged.. but I can hold hope for the average person. Even in Korea there are ground level movements that bring attention to the dog meat trade there. So there must be hope somewhere.

I think bacon has not tasted like bacon for over 15 years. Perhaps my tastes, or how they're feeding/raising the pigs.. but I'd rather have one look me in eye and get that connection that you know something is awake in there, than have one on a plate and only because it's a lazy food from the store.

I have seen mother cows cry all night when their baby is taken away and so will any animal, they clearly love their babies.

Originally posted by Terminal1
I personally think that animals are smarter than we give them credit for. Not to say that there are some mighty dumb animals out there but intelligence is a human construct is it not?

Anyway, just to add to the discussion in a tangential way, there are species of birds that keep a single mate throughout their lives too. I know this is just anecdotal but I do have multiple feeders on my property and I absolutely love watching doves interact. They always are paired off and I rarely see just one dove. Now that has to mean something. Birds seeking just one mate for life that is.

Side note... hummingbirds are just horrendous to each other though. Have enough of those around that I could possibly use an air traffic control tower. Was just refreshing the Vicks on the hummingbird feeders (keeps the bees off. Bees can smell, hummingbirds can't) and had a few just buzz up and check me out.

But birds are just simply amazing... and apologize for the off topic nature of this post lol.

11 animals that mate for life (and they have a right to be in nature and choose their own mate, they clear choose not just take any ole mate!)(unless stuck in a cage for life with no choices at all)
www.mnn.com...

This is easily accepted as even known as fact to anyone who's looked an animal in the eye and seen something more.

Very smart animal

I have seen mother cows cry all night when their baby is taken away and so will any animal, they clearly love their babies.


Yes, I've seen that sort of thing too. I also notice that young bulls are gentle before they are separated from their mothers, then their eyes start to harden and they become distrustful and nervy. They mourn their separation, as do sheep. I used to love the countryside until I moved into it, but now I hate the cruelty of the system to the animals (I say, "of the system" because the farmers and so on are generally kind and caring to their animals - but the routine of rearing them for food is intrinsically cruel in these ways). I especially hate a period in the summer which I've come to call the annual torment of the animals, when a lot of this goes on. You can hear them crying out for quite a few days, then that subdues and in order to continue to perceive their mourning you have to look into the eyes of those that are left.

To go back to the OP's topic, of course birds, and others, have their intelligence and sensitivity, yet every time a little bit more of it is discovered, many of us think it's strange. I think this is because people do have compassion, and one way feeling more comfortable is to compartmentalise thinking. That goes for scientists too.

I saw a squirrel trying to pull his dead friend that had been hit by a car out of the street. Animals have souls just like we do. It's amazing!