How long have walkers been around

This was done to give viewers its first full taste of who the leader of the Saviors used to be. One of his biggest problems was that he had a potentially violent temper, which he had to keep a leash on. But when the zombie apocalypse kicked off and his wife died from cancer, Negan stripped away his inhibitions and became a villain. The sequence about Negan being beaten up by a criminal was set 12 years ago.

At this point, zombies were already everywhere. Then, the show went back six weeks to him trying to help Lucille Hillarie Burton Morgan with her cancer treatments while also trying to keep their home safe from the walkers outside. This confirms that the characters in the show have been fighting for their lives against the zombies between 12 and 13 years now. Up until now, it was a bit more open to interpretation. The biggest clues were found by looking at the aging of characters like Carl, and adding up all the specified time skips that have transpired thus far.

Pronounced Jang-Sher is a term used in The Walking Dead: Typhoon to descripe a type of reanimated corpse in Chinese legends and folklore. A term used by the Whisperers in the TV Series. A term used by Tony Delmado and Percy. This is a term used by Athena Mukherjee. Speed Wilkins refers to the burned zombies from the prison herd as such much to the annoyance of Lilly Caul.

Lilly Caul makes a list of as many terms for zombies as she can remember that Tommy Dupree had come up with. This is one of many of those terms. A term used by Melvin when describing a herd of walkers. It should be noted, that this term is also used by Dr. Edwin Jenner to describe the spread of the virus. A term used by Sarah Rabinowitz. 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.

A term often used by the groups members of the Atlanta Camp , especially during the early seasons. A term used by Wendell when referring to a walker. It seems to be a codeword to describe the dead between him and Sarah.

A term used by Sarah. Originally used from here time at the military, she now uses it to describe the dead. A term used by Magna's Group. A term used by Eugene Porter after the discovery of The Whisperers. Used to destinguish members of the dead from members of The Whisperers.

Said by Duane Jones in the Morgan Special. A term used by Jeffrey Grimes. A term used to describe the undead during the early onset of the apocalypse given that society had yet been able to definetly define what was going on.

A term used by the residents of the Oceanside community, specifically those that came from the ocean. A term used by Negan Smith to describe the walkers on the fence of The Sancturary. A term Eugene used to descirbe the dead. A term used by Morgan when trying to explain to Rick about the apocalypse. A term used by the researchers at the CDC.

A term used by The Prisoners. A term used by Negan Smith to refer to the walkers inside the Subway Tunnel. A term used by Daryl Dixon. A special kind of zombie seen in Overkill's The Walking Dead.

A term used by Alpha when she threatens Henry that she'll let Beta break both his arms and legs and leave him for the dead. A term used by the Civic Republic to describe a large herd. A term used by the residents of The Perimeter. Zombies are relatively weak and unintelligent as individuals, but are dangerous in large numbers and in tight spaces. They are the main antagonists within the post-apocalyptic world of The Walking Dead. The vast majority of the human population 6.

This leaves about 1,, survivors left. As a species, Kirkman's zombies do not evolve and are permanently doomed to just deteriorate until there's nothing left but the skeleton. Everyone in The Walking Dead universe somehow contracted the zombie pathogen that, for reasons and through means unknown, brings the recently deceased back to "life. Scientist Dr. Edwin Jenner did not even rule out the possibility that the disease is of supernatural origin.

The exact taxonomy of the pathogen is also unknown. Curiously, the pathogen itself does not kill its hosts. Instead it remains dormant, likely within neural cells in the brain, leaving its host visibly and physically healthy. Only when the host dies, does the pathogen become active, infecting and reviving neural structures in the brain stem and certain parts of the cerebellum, turning a human into a zombie.

A zombie is thus a condition a recently deceased host enters when the pathogen is in its active stage. In the comic series, getting zombie bodily fluid blood, bile, saliva, etc. It is unclear in the TV-series whether or not the rule of infection above from the comic series is applicable. Sasha accidentally cut Abraham's arm with her zombie-blood soaked knife, yet he survived, indicating that the rules in the television series are different to a degree.

This was referenced earlier in the Season 2 episode "18 Miles Out", where Shane cuts his own hand with a knife that was previously used to kill a walker, and later wipes his cut hand on a place which a walker has licked. However, in Season 8 , due to a shortage of bullets, Negan Smith orders his men to dunk their weapons in walker guts to use to infect any living survivor with one slash very similar to the comics and the Saviors are successfully able to infect numerous residents of the Hilltop colony by injuring them with their coated weapons.

It is possible that more direct injuries to living survivors such as deep penetration wounds and larger quantities of walker tissue entering the bloodstream are able to cause living survivors to die and turn. At one point, Daryl Dixon states that this method of infection isn't the same as being bitten, that some people turn and some don't. However, this is contradicted by Tara Chambler who points out that everyone but her who got hit by tainted weapons fell ill and turned.

In Tara's case, it is believed that Dwight purposefully shot her with a clean arrow to save her life. In all probability, the injuries to Shane and Abraham mentioned above were not fatal because their wounds were not deep enough to get infected. As seen in " The Big Scary U ," using the walker guts trick has its own downsides as its possible for the person to get sick from the bacteria and contagions carried in the dead blood and guts.

Gabriel Stokes got ill in this manner, though Negan , who used blood from the same walker and put it unprotected on his skin, did not. However, this is simply transmission of already present illnesses and not contagion that turns people into zombies. As seen in Season 10, it appears that spreading walker blood through a water source does not contaminate it with the pathogen.

When Mary did this to Alexandria 's water supply, the residents only got cholera. In addition, the community's water filters would've stopped it had Dante not turned them off.

As mentioned previously, during the dormant stage, the pathogen is asymptomatic. The host will thus remain healthy despite being technically 'infected' and will continue to remain so as long they are alive. After the host dies, the dormant pathogen enters the active stage and will begin the process of reanimating the body through the infection and reactivation of neural structures in the brain.

No matter how an individual dies, unless their brain was severely damaged or destroyed, they will reanimate into a zombie following death. The pathogen enters the active stage when an individual dies and is responsible for the host's reanimation as a zombie. When an individual is bitten by a zombie, the active pathogen is transmitted into them as well as a plethora of bacteria and other infectious agents that reside in a zombie's mouth. In the event that amputation fails or is not possible, it is believed that the active pathogen then induces a fatal and irreversible cytokine storm, causing a high fever, aches, extreme fatigue, and nausea.

As the infection progresses, the active pathogen invades and spreads through the brain like meningitis, infecting synapses and other neural structures that are concentrated in the brain stem and parts of the cerebellum.

At the climax of the infection, the adrenal glands hemorrhage and the brain completely shuts down. All brain activity would cease, followed by the major organs and the body would be clinically dead: no measurable brain activity, no reflexes, and no respiration or pulse.

The time between the onset of the symptoms and death, followed by reanimation is very dependent on the severity, location, and quantity of the bite wound s of individuals who cannot be saved. In " The Good Man " of Fear the Walking Dead , Elizabeth Ortiz , after spending time with military doctor Bethany Exner , implies that all the infection itself from the bites does is kill the person.

The reanimation comes from the person dying as it would if they died of something like a gunshot or stab wound. The dead corpse of anyone that dies for any reason will reanimate as a zombie, unless the brain of the individual is badly damaged or destroyed, or the person was dead prior to the outbreak. As seen on the MRI of Candace Jenner, when a person dies, the active pathogen they carry enters the active stage, and reactivates critical areas of the brain that it infected, specifically the brain stem and some parts of the cerebrum and cerebellum that support necessary vital systems such as movement, resulting in reanimation after a variable amount of time.

Since the active pathogen only reactivates the brain stem and not parts of the brain such as the frontal lobe and neocortex that are responsible for higher-order brain functions, the reanimated person retains only a physical resemblance to their former self.

In the TV Series, it was stated by Dr. Jenner that according to all gathered evidence and research available at the time a corpse can reanimate between three minutes and eight hours after death, though there are instances where reanimation seems to happen much quicker, and the video game suggests that it could happen in seconds.

In the comic book, the group commonly encounters two zombie types: wandering, noise attracted "roamers," and lethargic "lurkers. It ignores Rick and Shane. In Volume 4 , a lurker bites Allen as he carelessly passes it by. In Volume 10 , Eugene studies a lurker that is too weak to move, suggesting that after time and lack of food, roamers become lurkers that become less alert and active as time passes.

In a recent letter column, Kirkman promises more hints of zombie physiology, and in a recent column he confirmed that " The body of the corpses, very likely through the zombie pathogen, manages to avoid immediate decomposition like regular human corpses, being able to halt or at least slow down, decomposition for years, if not decades at a time. In the show, it has been demonstrated that zombies don't require sustenance by eating, but have a strong desire to do so.

This is despite the fact that they have no digestive or circulatory activity which makes them unable to digest whatever flesh they consume. Zombies do not need to breathe, evidenced by Pete Dolgen still trying to reach for humans while underwater. Zombies may very rarely "dodge" melee attacks by leaning out of the way slightly, and some have been observed holding up their arms to likewise block attacks.

Milton Mamet once stated that zombies do starve, but "slower" than humans. Much like in the comics, decomposition is dramatically slowed down compared to a regular corpse. Cliff Carlucci likely died not long after the outbreak, but was still active a decade later. Zombies have the ability to detect scents and can differentiate between the living and the dead; they prefer to feed on living flesh.

Covering one's self in the scent of decay can act as a camouflage. They can also use sight to distinguish the living from the dead, although they seem to have poor eyesight as their irises fade and decay over time. They make up for this with heightened senses of hearing and smell. Darkness seems to have little effect on zombies' senses at close range, and in areas devoid of light they can still find their way around as they would in the day.

Individual zombie strength depends on the physical makeup of the individual and on how long they have been reanimated. When attacking, zombies often become more lively, exhibiting full-body effort, and can produce enough force to quickly overwhelm an adult human. Zombies have been shown to be able to rip open human and animal victims with ease, and they can even rip off human limbs with enough force.

As zombies decay, however, their muscles, and consequently, their entire body, becomes slowly, but surely, weaker. Zombies feel no pain. Although slow and seemingly unintelligent when not active, they can react quickly to sufficient stimulation, and can rapidly overpower a victim they have taken by surprise.

Though their bodies are no more or less durable than a non-decomposed human body, they can absorb all manner of physical damage, even when badly decomposed. Anything other than a head attack, spinal cord severing, or dismemberment leaves them seemingly unfazed. As long as their brain remains intact, everything that is attached to the brain can continue to function as normal, even if only the skull remains and is severed from the body. Other than a mostly intact brain, zombies don't appear to require any vital systems or organ functions to survive, although their ambulatory functions do decrease as their level of decomposition increases.

Sufficient physical damage can slow them down, or render them incapacitated. Compared to humans, zombies have rather limited mobility. Unstimulated, zombies stand still, or shuffle around slowly. When in this state they are sometimes referred to as "lurkers," as they can quickly activate, attack and kill. Zombies can also be found lying on the ground or in piles of other bodies, and can appear to be dead until stimulated.

If they are pursuing a possible victim, zombies can move somewhat more quickly, roughly equivalent to a very light jogging pace.

They can also lunge very short distances to grab close prey. They are difficult to shake off if they do manage to grab their victims, often allowing their arm to be ripped off before they will begin to let go.

A reanimated body responds to stimuli such as light, scent, and loud noises. Oddly, even if the head is separated from the body, as long as the brain is intact, the head will still attempt to eat anything within reach. The body of a zombie does appear to be truly dead, which means that it does not feel pain, has no reflexes, and wounds to it will not heal; its rate of decomposition slows drastically but does continue.

There is anecdotal evidence that some retain vestigial elements of memory and personality and this is shown some repeating behavior such as clinging to possessions, attempting to open doors, and even using large rocks to break through windows and doors. It has been hinted at that newly reanimated corpses retain some basic sense of intellect and perhaps memory, and can perform very basic tasks such as opening doors.

They have no sense of self-preservation other than eating, and will not react at all to the deaths of other zombies or to potentially lethal dangers to themselves. Zombies instinctively bite whatever prey they come in contact with, but have also been observed clawing at, tearing, and even punching humans and animals in order to topple them. They are slow and have a hard time overcoming obstacles, but have on occasion been shown to perform tasks like running and climbing fences.

Because a zombie is derived from a human form, it is limited physically by many of the same constraints that a human has. But because a zombie is, by definition, dead, it slowly rots and decays like other dead organisms. Over time, flesh and muscles deteriorate, and it becomes less and less formidable. 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.