I was driving recently and pondering the important things in life, like the most recent mid-season finale of The Walking Dead, and I began thinking about the wildlife (or lack thereof) in the series. There are no domestic animals like dogs or cats roaming around, and with the exception of a couple horses (RIP Nelly), a pig (RIP Violet), a goat (RIP Tabitha), occasional game, and at least one animal yet to be appear from the comics, there are no animals to be found in the zombie apocalypse. As I write this, I struggle to think of a single moment in the course of the show that I have seen even a carrion bird take advantage of the bountiful feast that is literally billions of dead people stumbling around with the coordination of a drunk toddler. As I contemplated the lack of scavengers in a world where most of the 7.3 billion people on earth are dead, I had an epiphany. Where the #$&@ are all the bugs?!
Anyone who has seen a couple episodes of CSI (who hasn't?) or a weird YouTube video or two (don't judge me) knows that insects play a significant role in the decomposition of organic material. It doesn't take an entomologist to know that bugs love dead things. They eat them, make babies in them, and live in them, yet in a world where almost everything is dead, there are no insects. Every single walker should be writhing with bugs as the insects consume and lay eggs in their zombie jerky, yet there is not so much as a fly to shoo.
Think about it, anywhere a few zombies, let alone a herd, is chilling, there should be a swarm of flies following that gravy train. You wouldn't worry about herds sneaking up on you because the sound of a million flies would reach you long before they or their stench would. This brings me to my final point, would zombies really exist long enough to pose a threat to survivors after the initial outbreak?
This probably goes without saying, but there are far more insects in the world than there are people. I know 7.3 billion humans sounds like a lot, but for every human being, there is an estimated 200 million insects. Even if you don't count the non-carnivorous variety, that is still a lot of bugs. Now imagine swarms of insects eating all those zombies as they wander around making that hissing/gurgling sound (despite the lack of airflow from non-functioning lungs). The truth is, the bulk of the dead would not make it a week. Maggots alone can consume 60% of a dead body in under a week, including the crucial dehydrated niblets that comprise the standard zombie brain. Before zombies could eat most of humanity, insects would eat most of the zombies. Even with the suspension of disbelief that the dead can walk, there is no way that a sizable population of the deceased would amble around in the Georgia sun without busting at the seams with bug larvae.
As fans, we frequently accept the unlikely, and often impossible to appreciate shows like The Walking Dead as a short break from reality. While I certainly don't need a zombie fantasy steeped in harsh realism, it is my hope that the creators of the series will take notice and begin to incorporate this missing detail into the series. In a show known for the occasional feature zombie (Torso/Bicycle Girl Walker, Well Walker, Screwdriver Walker) maybe have at least one that has a few bugs spilling out. So what do you guys think? Leave your thoughts in the comments below!