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Do animals hold funerals?

Answering your questions about life, Earth and the universe

Walking through the park and seeing animals all around him, CrowdScience listener Dougie wondered why he rarely, if ever, sees dead bodies of the creatures that live there.

He鈥檇 been thinking about what happens to animals when they die after seeing a dead fish on a beach with his Mum, Molly. It got him wondering whether any animals hold rituals that are like funerals and whether they grieve.

CrowdScience presenter Caroline Steel is setting off to find out, meeting researchers who have watched the behaviour of whales change after the death of another, and zookeepers who witnessed a mother鈥檚 unwillingness to let go after giving birth to a stillborn child.

Then, on a trip to an urban park, she sees for herself why dead animals don鈥檛 last long in the open.

Release date:

27 minutes

On radio

Next Friday 19:32GMT

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  • Next Friday 19:32GMT
  • Mon 27 Apr 2026 01:32GMT
  • Mon 27 Apr 2026 04:32GMT
  • Mon 27 Apr 2026 08:32GMT
  • Mon 27 Apr 2026 12:32GMT

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