How can zombies walk

They are only truly killed by destroying the brain, a common theme in many zombie variations. A severed head will remain animated and aggressive until the brain is destroyed or eventually disintegrates from decomposition. Fire has little effect on zombies, other than possibly angering them further, and normally lethal things such as acid or electricity also do little to impede them.

They can be paralyzed if their spinal cords are severed, though if they still have enough functional use of their arms only makes them much less ambulatory, clawing and dragging themselves across the ground.

Though zombies retain a physical resemblance to the living, cognitive similarities are almost non-existent beyond low-level functions, though there are examples of behavior that suggest zombies may retain small fragments of memory of their past lives. Zombies have enough intelligence to walk upright, to use their bodies to break objects, and to climb around or over somewhat small obstacles such as chain-link fences.

Zombies can ascend and descend staircases, albeit very clumsily and slowly. They cannot generally operate doors or gates and only attempt to do so when they are relatively "fresh"; they tend to bash through obstacles rather than traversing them.

Mostly, zombies are void of any emotional expression and thought. When stimulated, whether by noise, sight of prey, or simply encountering a problem they cannot solve, such as being unable to open a locked door, they quickly descend into a state of murderous aggression.

If they spot prey when stimulated, they can pursue them ceaselessly, showing ravenous hunger. They are not hunters, however, and take no concern in alerting their victims or trying to hunt them with intelligence, always seeming to roar, grunt, and growl whenever they are stimulated.

Zombies seem to only be drawn to noise such as that of a gunshot , presumably because they attribute the source of the noise to be caused by potential victims, and the smell of any blood that does not belong to a zombie. They have however occasionally been shown to be able to catch their victims by surprise, notably the walker who fatally wounded Dale Horvath which approached him silently and before pouncing him was only stimulated when Dale turned to see it.

Zombies also tend to form groups and stick together, and mimic the actions of other zombies, giving them a mob mentality. This can lead to zombies forming "herds," large hordes of zombies are far more dangerous and aggressive than smaller groups. In "Guts," zombies retain a further animalistic trait within their "herds," appearing to "sniff out" or examine new-coming zombies before leaving them be, as they do to Rick and Glenn, which may indicate that zombies seem to be able to familiarize themselves with their own kind and be cautious of ones they do not recognize.

Newer zombies may rarely use primitive tools, such as using a heavy brick to smash a window, but none have any high-level abilities to use items in their environment.

They lack any remaining speech capabilities, and can only moan, grunt, or wheeze, as well as roar and scream when alerted. Zombies are not shown to be able to "communicate" with other zombies by any means, though they will frequently copy the actions they witness other zombies perform, such as bashing on a door or moving in a group, eventually forming a herd.

In the beginning of the show we saw walkers do things like using a rock to help bash the doors in or turning a door knob, is there a reason we've stopped seeing them do that? Fresher zombies, which there were more of in season one, are able to do more than older, more rotted zombies.

Zombies prefer to eat anything dead or alive: animals and people. Zombies do not digest food. When their bodies are "full," the undigested meat will be forced out through the anus. Zombies are never shown in any media to exhibit cannibalistic tendencies, even after going through long periods without food, and only show interest in animals and living humans.

If the zombie loses the ability to feed, they evidently lose the desire to do so—a behavior observed in Michonne's pet Walkers. With their loss of desire for eating also comes with a loss of aggression and activity; unless present around other zombies, those who have lost the will to eat will remain quiet and lethargic, mindlessly walking in any given direction and paying no mind to humans.

The presence of many zombies being partially consumed or missing limbs also indicates that zombies, though they seem perpetually hungry, do not always devour prey fully, meaning that, at least for a short period of time, can feel "full" and not want to eat. In the TV series, the walker that consumed Lori Grimes' body was lethargic, sated and full, and did not attack Rick when he arrived on the scene. Still, they can be driven to attack and consume live prey due to the sheer aggressiveness the reanimative contagion seems to have given them.

It's been discovered by survivors that there are ways for them to blend in with zombies without being noticed. It's learned that when a person covers themselves in the scent of a zombie or corpse, other zombies can't tell the difference between them and one of their own.

The first camouflage method to be discovered was using the guts technique. By smearing parts of the body with zombie blood, a person is able to come across zombies undetected. Unfortunately there are two problems with this technique. The first problem is that the blood can easily dry up or be washed off, leaving you once again being noticed by passing zombies.

The second problem is that zombies will attack regardless of scent if the user draws attention to themselves such as causing extremely loud noises or start bleeding their own blood. This technique was first discovered by Rick and Glenn as they were walking through Atlanta. Nicholas Clark was able to use this technique several times without incident after discovering it by accident.

Notably, on the first time he did it, the walkers continued to ignore him even after Nick killed several. Due to the danger of getting sick from normal contagions within the blood, survivors tend to spread the blood and guts on a sheet or piece of clothing that they are wearing rather than direct skin contact. During the final battle of the Whisperer War in " A Certain Doom ," the Coalition used this trick to great effect to pass through a massive horde and later to infiltrate it and silently assassinate their enemies within.

The second known technique are "walker pets". By being in close proximity with a zombie without being bitten, the other zombies will instinctively assume the human is also a zombie. In the TV-Series, The Governor once noted that by "walk[ing] with the biters, they think you're a biter". Although the user's close proximity with the zombie usually wards off the other zombies, they can still attract attention since their scent is still exposed. This technique was first discovered by Michonne who kept her zombified boyfriend and his friend in chains after cutting off their arms and jaws.

The third known technique is zombie skin. Similar to the guts technique, the user masks their smell by skinning the skin off zombies, curing it into human leather which eliminates the danger of contagion , and wearing them as clothing. Faces and scalps are usually used to create a mask, which can be repaired by sewing in newer pieces from other zombies as desired or by necessity. This is perhaps the best out of the three when it comes to camouflage as it can't be washed off and doesn't leave a survivor exposed.

However, they can still be attacked by zombies if they draw attention to themselves. Additionally, unfamiliar survivors may shoot camouflaged humans, thinking that they are zombies. This technique is notably used by a group called the Whisperers. Also of note is that walkers tend not to notice or target those in advanced states of infection, as evidenced by Minerva being able to fall back into a herd in "Take Us Back" without any of the above-mentioned techniques.

However, she was also shown to have a large amount of walker blood and gore on her body, likely from the carnage she was caught in earlier, which may have helped camouflage her, though the walkers did eventually take notice of her and attack her after she was shot by Clementine.

It was recently revealed that when a survivor is suffering from a septic or gangrenous wound, the smell of the wound will mask their scent from walkers. This causes walkers to ignore them, until they cause too much noise or become noticeable to the walkers. The following is a list of characters from The Walking Dead that have all died and reanimated as a zombie. The video game section shows all characters that can potentially turn undead, regardless of player choice. Walking Dead Wiki.

Walking Dead Wiki Explore. Comic Series. TV Series. Unnamed or Unseen. Characters Seasons. Video Games. Characters Unnamed or Unseen Characters. Browse wiki. Explore Wikis Community Central. Register Don't have an account? View source. History Talk Do you like this video?

Play Sound. This article is about the zombies in the series. You may be looking for Notable Zombies. You get a bite, you get any kind of wound from these things, something from them gets in you Walkers "Walker" is a term for a member of the legions of the mobile deceased, who have come to dominate the world following the outbreak of the contagion that spawned them.

Roamers Roamers are known to "roam" around looking for food. Lurkers Lurkers are the zombies that just sit around playing "dead" until something approaches them and then bite.

Herd As described by Eugene Porter in the comic book, a herd is when a group of Walkers acts with a mob mentality. Floaters Floaters are zombies that became bloated after spending a long period of time in the water. Lame-Brains The term "lame-brains" was first used in the TV episode " Nebraska " by Dave and Tony , strangers that walk in the local bar not far from the Hershel's farm.

Empties When Paul Monroe was saved by Abraham Ford and Michonne as he was sleeping in an abandoned car, he used the name "empties" to refer to the zombies that were trying to get into the car. Deadies The name was used by Albert as he panics after eating Dale 's leg, whom was bitten. Swimmers This name is used when Dale Horvath and T-Dog encounter a bloated zombie trapped in the depths of a well while living at Hershel's farm.

Dead Ones This is used several times to describe a group of zombies. Ghouls This term is used by Tyreese in the Comic Series while talking to Rick about how he fears more the living than the "half-rotten ghoul trying to eat my flesh. Psychos This name is used by Daryl in Survival Instinct , during his talk with a cop called Jimmy Blake , who is hiding in a shelter on the roof of a building.

Wanderers This term, though not said as much, is used describing unseen or roaming walkers. Abominations Used by Merle in the Survival Instinct game. Stinkers Used by Magna's Group as they are traveling through the woods, prior to being swarmed by a massive herd guided by Paul, Eugene, Rosita Espinosa , Aaron, and other herd wranglers by accident.

Cow-Catchers A term, more of a metaphor, used by Jane. Deadheads Used by Nicholas during a discussion in " Remember ". Skinbags Used by Moyers during a discussion in " Cobalt ". Hunger Demons Term used by Rafael Machado. Hungries Term used by Rafael Machado. Deaders A term used by Merle Dixon in Survival Instinct, referring to the herd moving towards a bar his gang was holed up in.

The Passed A term used by John Dorie. The Stumblers A term used by Ryan in one of the Althea 's tape. Rippers A term used by Virgil. Husks This is a term used by Athena Mukherjee. Krispy Kremes Speed Wilkins refers to the burned zombies from the prison herd as such much to the annoyance of Lilly Caul. Slugs Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with. Shells Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with.

Stiffs Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with. Carcases Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with.

Dicks Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with. Chewies Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with. Reekers Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with. Meat Flyers Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with. Feeders Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with.

Mofos Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with. Fuckers This is used several times to describe a group of zombies. Pusbags A term used in the novel series. Fallen A term used in the novel series. Wildfire A term used by Melvin when describing a herd of walkers. Stragglers A term often used for any remaining walkers after a large herd has been defeated. Meat Munchers A term used by Sarah Rabinowitz Pack A term used by Shane Walsh to describe a group of walkers that is smaller than a herd, like the ones that attacked the Camp.

Bastards A term often used by the groups members of the Atlanta Camp , especially during the early seasons. The Reanimated A term often used by numerous counts of survivors to refer to zombies. Reanimated Bodies A term often used by numerous counts of survivors to refer to zombies.

Reanimated Corpses A term often used by numerous counts of survivors to refer to zombies. Reanimated Cadaver A term often used by numerous counts of survivors to refer to zombies. Bear A term used by Wendell when referring to a walker. Bogies A term used by Sarah. Sickos A term used by Magna's Group. Tails A term used by Magna's Group. Skin-Munchers A term used by Sarah. They would sink to the bottom of the water body and stay there until they get washed up on shore.

Hearing appears to be much better than human hearing which means that silence or at least trying to be quiet can be vital when fighting zombies or trying to evade them. Night vision also seems to be better than human standards which allow them to chase after prey in dark conditions.

They don't have the ability to speak but are able to moan which is the result of locating prey. Once a zombie locates prey, it will continue to pursue regardless of most circumstances and they don't require sleep or rest of any kind.

For example running into barriers or walking up elevated surfaces will serve to delay them but unless they lose contact, zombies will always continue in pursuit. They can decay over time about three to five years which is very good news. Zombies are already decomposing due to multiple micro organisms that are breaking down the already dead body and so various body parts can be affected over time.

To fight a zombie or zombies, the key objective is survival. It is not to engage or draw the attention of more zombies by combat, unless that is the only option. Be wary of getting grabbed by a zombie, and remember to mind your surroundings. Fighting one zombie can quickly turn into fighting a horde of them.

Zombies don't feel pain so stabbing one in the heart would not result in stopping it. Cutting off limbs might make it less effective to grab you or continue walking but the zombie would still be alive, well, alive as it can be.

Even decapitating a zombie will leave the head intact and ready to bite any kind of food. The most effective way to kill a zombie is to take out the brain. A positive of fighting zombies is that they don't heal or regenerate. Once a zombie is injured, it stays that way until it is killed.

Effective weapons against zombies would include: guns, knives, spears, swords, and even maybe some sporting equipment such as a cricket bat. Part of this might have to do with the viral outbreak targeting the existing brain tissue and reanimating it to perform basic functions.

It's hard to imagine hearing being among them, however. Since the virus reduces the zombie to a mindless eating machine, it's odd to think that it has use of its ears and can still hear well. Even if it were possible, it seems improbable that a zombie would put two and two together from sounds versus images. As far as The Walking Dead has revealed, the virus responsible for the zombie outbreak reanimates the brain and gives it enough juice to turn a corpse into a bipedal nibble machine.

Just as the rate of decay makes little sense, so too does the lack of bugs responsible for breaking down the body after death. Typically, certain insects such as maggots will make short work of consumable materials fairly quickly before bigger and beefier bugs show up to take care of the tougher stuff. It makes no sense to see zombie corpses effectively frozen in time without scores of creepy crawlers devouring them as nature intended.

Rigor mortis occurs shortly after death and can last an average of 72 hours, at which point the condition recedes. Such a phenomenon has yet to be witnessed on The Walking Dead. Freshly killed humans reanimate just when rigor is supposed to set in, which makes no sense from a biological standpoint. Brain activity doesn't prevent rigor mortis, as the condition is dependent on calcium ions in the membranes of muscle cells. Therefore, one should see a bunch of zombies locked up with nowhere to go, rather than shuffling around in search of a snack.

Many zombies in The Walking Dead look like they've been around legitimately for years, but even the recent dead should be susceptible to decomposition of the eyes. Yet, the most audiences see are milky and hazy eyes commonly associated with post-death conditions. The question is, why does it stop there? Eyes depend largely on oxygen, and since they're a soft tissue, they are prone to dry out and decompose rather quickly.

Even the cornea may only be used for transplant purposes up to twenty or so hours after death. It makes no sense that zombies are still walking around with eyes in their skulls, much less seeing with any degree of clarity. It seems as if the zombies of The Walking Dead have possession of at least their primary senses, but it's not known why.