The Dead and Their Microbes: Various microbial ecologies come into play as a corpse decomposes, releasing nutrients along with commensal microbes, which then compete with those in soil

Abstract

There is life after death, and it is mainly microbial. Ernest Hemingway published in 1933 his essay, “A Natural History of the Dead,” based on his experiences as an ambulance driver during World War I. He saw parallels between decaying corpses along battlefields and the ecosystems described by naturalists of his day, asking “can we not hope to furnish the reader with a few rational and interesting facts about the dead? I hope so.”