Some research has shown that Neanderthals, a now extinct species or subspecies of humans, may have performed funeral rites by placing flowers with the dead. In the 1950s and 60s in modern day Iraq, researchers discovered fossils of pollen and flowers at a Neanderthal burial site in Shanidar Cave.

Research into mourning practices has extended to the animal kingdom as well. Several species of animals, wide-ranging from penguins and birds to horses and elephants, have been reported to exhibit surprising actions as a response to grief. Visual documentation has shown that elephants, during the loss of a family member, have been known to make a line in front of the dead body and stroke it carefully. Some not leaving its side for several days. Another documentation shows a bird’s funeral where they make a circle around a dead body for a long time. Though no one is sure if the action is recalled by the emotion of grief yet, it should be recalled by death at least.

Even if humans and some animals are taking different ways of mourning, what is very important is the fact that such as universal sense is shared across different attributes.