Magpies Bringing Grass to Corpses: A Human-like Mourning or a Defensive Mechanism?

People have always believed that animals also experience joy, anger, and sadness, just like us.

Dogs mourn their owners and fellow companions; cats grieve when they don't get their food on time, because their owners often sleep in on Saturdays. Chimpanzees, a primate species, exhibit this behavior even more noticeably; they can mourn just like us. After the death of one member of a group, other chimps will stop eating for several days, normally lively ones will become silent, and they will stare at the body for a long time.

Scientists believe that many animals, especially mammals and birds, will grieve for deceased members. Unlike humans who typically bury their dead and hold funerals, animals generally cannot do this.

However, there are exceptions, such as jays.

Jays are a common bird species distributed worldwide, except Antarctica, Oceania, Africa, and South America. They are found in every corner of the world.

Jays also have a 'lucky' meaning in folklore, believed to bring good news, as exemplified by the idiom '' (joyful and beaming). There are many legends about jays in folklore.

Jays are not only auspicious but also beneficial birds. At least 80% of their diet consists of pests, therefore, they help agriculture. Even jay meat can be used medicinally, treating chronic illnesses and deficiencies.

Despite this, jays should not be captured arbitrarily. In 2000, jays were listed as a national protected beneficial terrestrial wild animal.

Unassuming jays hold funeral rites.

According to reports, the jay behaviors observed appear not only as sadness but also as a memorial ceremony.

When a jay encounters the body of another jay, it may approach, carefully peck at the body, as if to say 'Wake up! Wake up!' trying to confirm if it is still alive.

If the body doesn't respond, the jay will fly away, and after a few minutes, it will return with some grass and place it beside the body.

Researchers have observed that multiple birds do this, and other jays will join this special funeral, each bringing its own grass, and then standing beside the body before flying away.

Finally

This behavior is also observed in crows and ravens, indicating that it is not an unusual phenomenon nor a behavior specific to a single species.

Many scientists have questioned this, arguing that covering the body with grass or leaves does not necessarily mean burying the body, it may simply be an animal's defensive mechanism to avoid attracting predators or scavengers to the body.

However, the editor believes that this defensive mechanism is not necessary for birds, as birds are frequently in flight and can't be found every time, but at least they appear and disappear like dragons, so it is definitely not a necessity.

Since we can't be the eyewitnesses, this is a matter of opinion.

What do you think about the jay behavior of bringing grass – is it a funeral or just a normal behavior?