Do other animals understand the concept of death?
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| Do other animals understand death? |
In 2018, she gave birth to an orca named Talequa. But her daughter died within an hour. However, her powers did not leave her body.and within the next 17 days During the 1,600km journey, she let him float on top of her and dived to retrieve the body.
The farther he slides, even as his condition begins to worsen. Tahlequah’s behavior is certainly unusual due to its changing feeding and travel patterns. But is she mourning — or just confused? Do nonhuman animals grieve? This question is difficult. In 1871, Charles Darwin presented the argument.
Other animals also experience a wide range of emotions, including sadness. But many scientists have long been wary of projecting human emotions onto other animals, especially in the absence of reliable bridges between our minds and theirs. It is also thought that they may exhibit erratic behavior after death for other adaptive reasons.
For a while, it was thought that humans were the exception: other animals interacted and lived, while only we thought and felt. This concept has been increasingly challenged in the twentieth century. In 1985, for example, a gorilla named Koko had received some signaling training using American Sign Language, only to be told her young companion had died.
Do animals understand the phenomenon of death?
She called 911, and a few weeks later, she saw a photo of another cat with the signature words “cry,” “sad,” and “frown.” Now, a growing body of data and observations suggest that some animals, including mammals and birds, may experience what we call grief. In 2003, Elephant’s mother, Eleanor, split up.
A few minutes later, another mom named Grace approached and helped Eleanor up, but she fell again. Grace spoke up, stood beside Eleanor, and tried to push her up. After Eleanor died, a woman named Maui approached Eleanor, placed herself on top of Eleanor’s body and rocked it back and forth.
Elephants from five different families visited Eleanor’s carcass over the course of a week. On various occasions, elephants have been seen carrying the remains of family members, including jaws and tusks. In 2010, a giraffe was born with a deformed foot that made it difficult to walk. The calf lives only four weeks.
On the day the calf died, 22 other females and four calves watched closely, sometimes even passing by the carcass. On the third morning, the mother was alone, still not eating, as giraffes often do.
Instead, she stayed by even as the hyena ate the carcass of the dead calf. Scientists are also starting to quantify how other animals respond to death.
In 2006, researchers analyzed baboon fecal samples for glucocorticoids, stress hormones that rise when humans lose a loved one. They compared bereaved females to predator attacks with samples of unrelated females. They found that glucocorticoid levels in the baboons rose significantly one month after death.
These baboons then increased their grooming behavior and the number of grooming partners, thereby expanding and strengthening their social network. Within two months, glucocorticoid levels returned to baseline.
The researchers also noted that primate mothers engage in seemingly contradictory behaviors when holding their stillborn babies. Switching between cannibalistic behaviors, such as carefully dragging and carrying the dead body of a child, or cleaning it up, suggested that mothers experienced conflicting urges towards the dead body. Our current understanding of the emotional landscapes of other animals is very limited.
Do animals have the consciousness to understand the concept of death?
To better understand mourning in the animal kingdom, we need more research. But what do we do now? Discussions about whether nonhuman animals experience emotions like sadness can be emotional, in part because their findings have very real implications — such as determining whether orcas should be kept in isolation and kept in captivity, or separated. Newborn calf.
Until we have more data on the subject, should we treat nonhuman animals as if they have the capacity to grieve? Or assume they don’t? Which ideology does more harm?
in conclusionUltimately, it remains an open question whether other animals can understand death. It depends on how they react and react differently when faced with death, which varies between species. Although there is evidence that some animals display behaviors that can be interpreted as an understanding of death, this question still requires further research and scientific research before definite results can be reached. Regardless of an animal’s ability to understand death, we must respect and care for its life, treating it with the highest level of kindness and care. Every animal has unique abilities and emotions that deserve respect and protection. No matter how well animals understand death, research and exploration of the topic enhances our understanding of the animal world and helps enhance our perception of the world as a whole. Exploring the relationship between humans and animals helps to increase our awareness and deepen our respect for other creatures and their wondrous nature.
