How many Zombies do you think are left?

[Verse]

I saw some stuff posted a while back about the Zombies maybe starving, but I was wondering what people thought on a broader scale. How many do you think are really left? Not a number per say, but a general idea.

I was figuring this.

1) We know we are at around a year. (Micheal said it was 4 months without finding anything. I know things could happen else where, but I figured this would just a be a good time stamp)

2) We know they are living and KC has put thought into how they work on a biological level. That being said I do not think they could be so bad ass and eat less. Something as big as the Behemoth would need more food. Also all that extra skin, muscle tone, stronger heart, ect.

3)We know they need to eat, sleep, drink water, ect. Also the fact that they may be willing to eat outside of meat (Remember the MRE's?) if need be.

Thinking about that (and others if you think of any), I don't think there are many Zombies left as we think. I know they said an ungodly amount we heading to the Hospital. With all the ones we have killed off, the lack of food, plus time... I don't think we have many left.

We have seen how much work it has taken for the others to survive. It isn't just a danger thing, but always looking for food, water, meds, ect. I am betting the Zombies do not get sick, but I don't see them going House to House looking for stuff and gathering it up. We know that TOWTM can control them, but when away they seem to not be able to focus. Based on what we have seen, I don't see him going "Hey... go on a can food drive" and them getting sacks gathering stuff up and whistling whle they work.

Add the fact that it has been almost a year... I just don't see how they could stay at the current numbers. I see them running out of food and water.

[Witch_Doctor]

Good question. I've always wondered what happened to much of the population of L.A. days after the outbreak. Saul and Angel were surprised at how empty the streets were when they first ventured out for supplies. I think some things that could affect the current number are:

1. The number of people turned
2. minus the number who were killed and eaten
3. minus the number who were turned but later died of the wounds they suffered when attacked
4. minus the survivors who hid but later died either from starvation, illness, homicide etc...
5. minus the zombies dying from starvation, disease and zombicide.

According to Saul, the behemoth with the arrow in its eye had an infection, so they seem to be able to get sick. We've seen that they can starve from the emaciated swimmers that attacked Micheal and Pegs on the Yacht. But I wonder, too, what has happened to the rest. There were over 8 million people in the L.A. area. Los Angeles should stink to high heavens.

[FunkyDung]

Has anyone considered the possibility of zombies hibernating?

[Vlarken]

^I don't think they would really need to hibernate in LA, since the climate there is so constant. I live a few hours away from there, and it's almost like the seasons are non-existent compared to other places I've lived. Also the human body isn't properly equipped for hibernation... Perhaps the behemoths could, as they seem to be able to acquire so much more fat than the normal biters.

I'm of the opinion that not a ton of biters are left. What with a reckless disregard for their own self-preservation and shortage of food (which we've seen has led to cannibalism), I think that would have severely lessened their numbers. Also, we don't see that many normals in the show anymore, although this could simply be Ink keeping them in tightly knit groups to prevent tons of further losses. However, all he really needs is a strong core of 'modified' biters to have an effective army; normal biters don't really pose that much of a threat to the survivors anymore.

[LiamKerrington]

Interesting question. And a good one as well.

I, too, think that the numbers of zombs wasn't big from the beginning. Most people who were attacked by them zombs were killed during the attack, and only few turned into zombs. This is what we saw right from the beginning.
What we also saw were four special situations with groups of zombs:
a) Ink's organized zomb-army which was capable of gathering and hoarding food in the arena, and probably afterwards in the hospital (and maybe other locations);
b) the waves of zomb-attacks against the Colony, which hint at either maybe another group of zombs being organized to a certain degree or units of Ink's army attacking the Colony every now and then (, which I don't hold as likely, 'cause the Colonists never realized special zombs, which seems to be quite the remarkable attribute of Ink's zomb-group(s));
c) the decaying zombs at the yacht, which we know about almost nothing (where did they come from, were they organized (seems to be, as they attacked as a group) ...);
d) the Little-One-army that was created in Boulder almost immediately.

c) and d) are quite interesting, because they reveal something very important: zombs seem to follow their food. And if there is no food, the basic ecology-rules are applicable 1o1 - no food, then death.

We learned a couple of interesting feeding-methods of them zombs as well: they eat human flesh as well as their own kin; they also at least try to open canned food, which means: they understand the basic concept of ready food in cans, boxes, bags, or whatever type of industrially produced food. We never learned about zombs eating animals as well. But I think it is safe to assume that anywhere where animals gather in huge numbers (farms), them zombs will feed upon them as well.
Ok, what does this mean? Humans, dead zomb-bodies, animals, "fresh" food (fruits, vegetables, eggs, corn, etc.) will decay on its own, so this is not a reliable source for long. As long as them zombs are not organized and do not follow a more or less strict and disciplined method of feeding, they won't live long and prosper based on this kind of food. As for packaged food it really depends on the two questions if zombs know where to look and if they are capable of opening the units in order to eat the stuff.

We only know about one really good and thoroughly organized group of zombs. And that is Ink's army. In December, so almost eight months down the timeline, the group still was big enough to surround the Colony, as I recall it. But about the unorganized zombs I am not so certain. I think the number of zombs has decreased - especially when it comes to small towns, suburbs, maybe even small villages. But it is really hard to tell. And Ink's army - does it shrink, does it grow in number, has it kind of a solid number of members?

We should not forget: Zombs only appear if they are important for certain scenes. And with just another time-jump covering several months we don't know, what the typical zomb-encounter looks like. So I guess it might be quite helpful to learn more from the journals produced by the human survivors. If the numbers of zombs decrease, then the Colonists (and maybe other survivors in other areas) will be able to leave shelter soon and re-establish a civilization big time ... If not, well, let's hope they don't run out of ammo.

Best wishes!
Liam

[Verse]

My gut says that Ink's group is not much bigger than what we saw in the attack. I can't see him going "Ok guys, you all stay here while Daddy runs some errands". I see them gathering what they can, but after a year, plus the group being the size it was, I think a lot of them would have died off. Ink would have had the dieing ones killed and eaten them.

Still, A year is a really long time in regards to food. Even if they eat at a normal rate I can't see them staying around long. The Behemoth is the kicker. That thing would have to eat and drink a lot to stay going. Keeping him around would have been a resource hog.

I am betting that while Burt and Riley are out and about they will point out that there is almost nothing out there anymore. Then we will find out that Ink's group is much small than we thought.

[FunkyDung]

Couldn't the zombies eat wild animals to survive? Humans seem to be their preferred prey, but I don't see why they couldn't adapt to eating smaller mammals. They just better not lay a rotted finger on Mr. Whiskers!

[LiamKerrington]

Couldn't the zombies eat wild animals to survive? Humans seem to be their preferred prey, but I don't see why they couldn't adapt to eating smaller mammals. They just better not lay a rotted finger on Mr. Whiskers!

Sure. But I think wild animals are shy enough to flee as soon as the rotten and disgusting smelling flesh of zombs is around. Animals almost immediately vanish from sight when normal humans come along. It might be a difference, if we consider animals of prey like bears, jaguars, mountain lions, or herd mammals like bisons; but animals of prey normally are around in very small numbers, and a stampeding bison herd will be anything, but certainly no food for zombs (at least my bet).

This animal thing raises just another question: what, if the zomb-agent mutates and evolves into a state that it could change animals into zombs as well? A zomb-bison-herd ... That would be kind of nasty, wouldn't it?

Best wishes!
Liam

[FunkyDung]

This animal thing raises just another question: what, if the zomb-agent mutates and evolves into a state that it could change animals into zombs as well? A zomb-bison-herd ... That would be kind of nasty, wouldn't it?

So would a zombie cow moan for GRAAAAAAAINS?

[Witch_Doctor]

This animal thing raises just another question: what, if the zomb-agent mutates and evolves into a state that it could change animals into zombs as well? A zomb-bison-herd ... That would be kind of nasty, wouldn't it?
Best wishes!
Liam

As long as they are primarily cannibal zombison, I'll cool with that. What about herbivore zombies? Will they be driven to eat flesh or am I asking a sophomoric question?

Anyway, as a good deal of the zombies turned via experiencing some sort of open wound during an encounter with a zombie, almost all of them must be prone to infections. They don't have access to medical attention and like Anavrin says...

What with a reckless disregard for their own self-preservation

...they're probably cutting and bruising themselves silly fighting each other and chasing food. They must be starving, pussing, fighting themselves to extinction. It's almost like a War of the Worlds-type solution to the outbreak.

If their primary food source are the dead, be it human or zombie, and fresh meat is scarce then rotting meat just ain't healthy. Unless the contagion changes the immune system in some way these things are going to get sick and die off. Riley mentions that no one is producing food anymore. We live in a highly specialized civilization. Food production is centralized as opposed to everyone being a hunter-gatherer. Live stock my be eaten by the zombies for a while or they may die off from lack of human care.

Skittles described the normal ones as thinking about eating all of the time. As pointed out a number of times on this thread, Ink is the only one keeping them from consuming their resources too fast. That's a LOT of stupid zombies to control. My question is how many of the remaining zombies are Smart Ones.