From Jon Hinwood, Melbourne, Australia
Why are many scientists sceptical that an animal (in this case, the hominin Homo naledi) could respond to the death of a fellow animal by special treatment of the body – burial – as proposed by Lee Berger? Like most pet owners, I have seen one animal mourn another by inspecting and even prodding the body, then carrying a toy or garment with the scent of the deceased pet for a few hours(26 July, p 38).
More dramatically, in an outer suburb of Sydney, I once observed a “funeral service” for a firetail finch that had flown into a large plate-glass window that was a few metres from dense bushland. Two dozen of these little birds examined the body, then formed a ring around it and slowly circulated, bobbing up and down. The whole performance, from the flock gathering to the inspecting and dancing, took about 10 minutes. If birds can do that, surely so could H. naledi.
