[Intro]
\n[Engine Idle, Highway Ambience, Light Drums, Bass Groove]
\n[Spoken Vocal]
\nRemember when…
\nA summer drive meant stopping for gas…
\nAnd cleaning the windshield.<\/p>\n
Not once…
\nBut over and over again.<\/p>\n
Now the glass stays clean…
\n(There is no yield)
\nRevealed:
\n(No bugs in the scene)
\n… know what I mean?<\/p>\n
[Verse 1]
\nCruisin’ down the blacktop
\nWindows rolled down
\nUsed to hear the buzzin’
\nAll around town
\nDragonflies and fireflies
\nMoths beneath the moon
\nClouds of life were everywhere
\nBut they vanished much too soon<\/p>\n
[Pre-Chorus]
\nSomething changed
\nAlong the way
\nThe silence grew
\nDay by day<\/p>\n
[Chorus]
\nA fly…
\n(On the phenomenon)
\nOh my
\n(Now there’s none)<\/p>\n
[Refrain]
\nSplatometer
\n(Runnin’ flat)
\nSplat!<\/p>\n
Insect splatter
\n(Sure does matter)<\/p>\n
[Verse 2]
\nUsed to wipe the windshield
\nEvery hundred miles
\nNow it stays so spotless
\nYear after year and mile after mile
\nThe roads are getting cleaner
\nBut something isn’t right
\nWhen the air grows empty
\nOf wings in summer light<\/p>\n
[Pre-Chorus]
\nThe birds are looking
\nFields and streams
\nNo dinner cooking
\nJust leftover dreams<\/p>\n
[Chorus]
\nA fly…
\n(On the phenomenon)
\nOh my
\n(Now there’s none)<\/p>\n
[Refrain]
\nSplatometer
\n(Runnin’ flat)
\nSplat!<\/p>\n
Insect splatter
\n(Sure does matter)<\/p>\n
[Bridge]
\n[Music Drops to Bass and Organ]
\nHalf or more in others too
\nAnd the warning’s coming through
\nVacant fields and flowers
\nThe blame is all ours<\/p>\n
[Build]
\nOne by one
\nThe losses add
\nUntil the whole thing’s looking bad<\/p>\n
[Chorus]
\nA fly…
\n(On the phenomenon)
\nOh my
\n(Now there’s none)
\nA fly…
\n(Where’d they go?)
\nOh my
\n(We may never know)<\/p>\n
[Refrain]
\nSplatometer
\n(Runnin’ flat)
\nSplat!<\/p>\n
Insect splatter
\n(Sure does matter)<\/p>\n
Splatometer
\n(Falling fast)
\nSplat!
\n(How much longer)
\nCan this last?<\/p>\n
[Final Verse]
\nThe windshield tells a story
\nAnybody can see
\nA signal from the roadside
\nOf a changing tragedy
\nThe smallest things among us
\nOften hold the biggest key
\nAnd when they start disappearing
\nWhat does that say for you and me?<\/p>\n
[Final Chorus]
\nA fly…
\n(On the phenomenon)
\nOh my
\n(Now there’s none)
\nA fly…
\n(On the windshield glass)
\nOh my
\n(Passed into the past)<\/p>\n
[Extended Refrain]
\nSplatometer
\n(Runnin’ flat)
\nSplat!
\nInsect splatter
\n(Sure does matter)
\nFood webs shatter
\n(That does matter)
\nEmpty chatter
\n(Science matters)<\/p>\n
[Outro]
\n[Highway Sounds Fade]
\n[Soft Acoustic Guitar]
\n[Fade Out]
\nSplat…
\nSplat…
\nSplat…
\n(No more of that…)<\/p>\n
About the Song
\nThe “windshield phenomenon” refers to the observation that people see far fewer dead insects on their windshields today than they did a few decades ago. What began as an anecdotal observation has since been confirmed by scientific studies documenting substantial declines in insect populations around the world.<\/p>\n
Researchers have even measured the trend directly using standardized bug-splatter surveys.<\/p>\n
*In Denmark, a study tracking insect impacts along the same driving routes from 1997 to 2017 found roughly an 80% decline in insect splatters, paralleling declines in insect-eating bird populations.<\/p>\n
* In the UK, “Splatometer” surveys conducted by the Kent Wildlife Trust found a 50% to 72% reduction in insect collisions compared with measurements from 2004.<\/p>\n
* A landmark 2017 study in German nature reserves reported a 76% decline in total flying insect biomass over a 27-year period.<\/p>\n
The causes are complex and likely include habitat loss, pesticide use, pollution, climate change, invasive species, and other environmental stressors acting together. Regardless of the exact mix of causes, the decline is significant because insects form the foundation of many ecosystems, supporting pollination, soil health, birds, amphibians, and countless other species.<\/p>\n
In many ways, the disappearing bugs on our windshields may be one of the most visible signs of a much larger ecological disruption.<\/p>\n