Could well be you're onto something there....

I have a bigger beef with supertracker Daryl as he is unable to find food, water, supplies or have any awareness they are the prey for Aaron.

Is his time limited in the group?

 

Could be a good idea for an energy source - but I think it was just a shallow creek to begin with, and I assume they were just in the midst of a drought - thus there be no other types of game for them to eat, and why the Dogs probably came upon them - since they were out of options.

 

This is an interesting theory but there is a slight flaw in the logic. This didn't appear to be a river, it was a small stream and those run dry all the time when there is no rain. And based on the conversation in the show, there had not been rain for quite some time. I don't think a stream that small would generate much power unless it was combined with a bunch of other waterways. I would love to see a group develop a setup that you suggest though.

 

Could very well be. I've always said hydroelectricity would be a very plausible resource in a social-collapse scenario. But I think most people would opt for solar power. It could be someone damned up a more fast flowing area further upstream and this is why this smaller tributary has dried up.

That being said though; I think it may just be a seasonal, or "wet-weather" stream or creek. The kind of waterways that only run in spring and the rainy seasons. Also, I was given the impression by the episode as a whole that they were experiencing an exceptionally hot and dry summer. It could be there were experiencing a drought in the region; which would definitely cause a small tributary to dry up quickly enough to result in the death of the ecosystem and wildlife that depend on and revolve around that stream.

It makes sense, the dead frogs, the lack of game to hunt, the fact that Daryl had to dig six inches into the earth to find worm, the pack of feral dogs who looked to be starved and dehydrated to the point of vicious aggression and venturing outside of their regular routines and hunting grounds to find food and water. All these signs seem to point to a drought or a very hot and dry season that is rendering the countryside barren and fruitless. It could be one of the worst they've had in years. Especially because weather patterns would change drastically in the event of an apocalypse. Once you take all the humans, the carbon waste we create, and the heat generated by large cities; weather would become very, very different.

But I like your thinking; it does seem, due to the relative moistness of the creek bed, that it dried up very quickly and very recently. Which could certainly point to human intervention.

 

I live in Virginia and the stream that they came upon was what we call a dry hollow. The stream runs only when there is an abundance of water. It is unrealistic that they were unable to find water and game. Virginia has numerous springs, streams, rivers, ponds, and lakes. On major highways you cross a river about every 30 miles. We also have 4 major watersheds which feed rivers a mile or more in width near the coast. The Potomic, The Rappahannock, The James, and The Roanoke. Anywhere in Virginia you would be able to find a water soufce in a couple of hours max.
The countryside teems with wildlife. I have never seen wildlife disappear for any reason. This episode was unrealistic in those aspects.

 

Thanks for the info. I think we can probably chalk up the issues they are having with water to dramatic license.

 

But it is during the middle of a ZA so its possible that its not that"unrealistic" as you claim with all due respect to you.

 

River's don't commonly run dry, but small streams run dry all the time. They come and go, based upon the frequency of rain. The idea is that this is a draught. Using a small stream for hydroelectricity might power a wristwatch.

 

What Surviving said and then some. Plus there are a ton of man-made lakes/farm ponds. I live about 60 miles from Dee Cee and I can't go more than a mile without crossing or seeing some body of water whether it is a crick or rivah, lake or pond.

 

Thank you for sharing the info on VA. I was wondering about water sources. As for the game, I would have to say that with walkers everywhere and a drought the wildlife might have headed away from the road. I do get your point though. Here in FL there's more road kill and more smaller critters that would be easy to catch and eat. But with walkers wondering around, a drought, and no human trash to keep them coming towards neighborhoods, I have to wonder how their patterns would change.

 

Yes hydro power has been used here in Va for at least 3 centuries. Water mills over a hundred years old are common. We also have some cotton mills and papers mills. Where I live I know of at least 5 hydroelectric dams with in 50 miles. Basically you would have find one of these places and covert it to suit your purposes. [MENTION=65092]Lummsy200[/MENTION] Whats the deer population like where you live? Im assuming you live near Fredricksburg, Elkton or maybe Culpepper.

 

It's good enough that my brother will come down and hunt on his in-laws land which is about 5 miles from where I live but since there is so much open area he never gets one. He does better by his house in Man's asses in which he has a 20 acre kill box. Anyway I do tend to see them by the side of the road during the fall or near the lake by my house, just had a "herd" of 5 come through my backyard on Monday. There is a road that runs from Rt 3 to US 29 on which I have close to hitting several on several different occassions (along with a wayward cow once) There is too much cover to see them out in the open except at dusk and dawn.

And yes I live between FredVegas and Culpeper, on the Wilderness battlefield.

 

There is currently a mass extinction of frogs going on, according to "The Sixth Extinction" by Elizabeth Kolbert. She says it is due to a fungus and this photo is from her book. So, wondering whether the writers are aware of this. Remember in S1 when Shane is joking around with Carl & Lori about eating frog legs when they run out of food. Now, a couple years later, they're out of food and, at least according to this author, amphibians are dying out and being found belly-up pretty much world wide. Hmmmm!
fungus.

 

...there's a fungus among us...


But seriously, frogs are an indicator species..I think this scene was to reinforce the feeling of utter despair, desolation and death

 

Frogs, Plural!!!

 

So, I forgot to mention -- I was in Baggage Claim and there is one of those "billboards" , for lack of a better word, for "savethefrog.com" The message was to help them save frogs in Yellowstone dying from lack of water. (They may not have red the Sixth Extincition re a "fungus amung us". Anyway, I guess mypoint in posting this as that TWD's writers are pretty clever. Seems unlikely the dead frogs were a coincidence.