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[Irenices]

I think it would be very handy if animals would slowly clean up the map for you, such as vultures and buzzards taking away body parts/bones instead of just harrassing your dwarfs outside, after several years in my current fortress iv got 100's of dead goblins out there and it would just be nice not having to take care of all that myself.

[King DZA]

I suspect this type of thing will start to occur when carnivores become more...carnivorous.

[Uristocrat]

I think it would be very handy if animals would slowly clean up the map for you, such as vultures and buzzards taking away body parts/bones instead of just harrassing your dwarfs outside, after several years in my current fortress iv got 100's of dead goblins out there and it would just be nice not having to take care of all that myself.

That, and some things should just rot away to nothing.  I mean, with exposure to weather and whatnot, those old clothes out there should wear away into nothing at all.  The metal might even rust, albeit more slowly, or even get buried in soil over time.

[The Wanderer of Planes]

Let's not forget that from bones come bone meal (duh) which
is in real life a source of phosphorus that can be used as a fertilizer.

Instead of rotting, they could dissolve in the ground making it more
fertile. Same thing for clothes and items made out of organic material.
They could possibly disappear and turn back to raw material (ashes to
ashes).

Of course, some things never (or take more than a thousand years) to
turn back into raw material. Glass is a good example of this... so are certain
metals that do not oxide much or at all such as steel.

[Footkerchief]

It should be noted that the broader concept of scavengers has been throughly discussed, and the specific use of scavengers to reduce the number of items on the map has come up as well:

http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=3243.0
http://www.bay12forums.com/smf/index.php?topic=5234.msg68732#msg68732

[The Wanderer of Planes]

Cool. Thanks for the links!

The fact we talk about it that much only means it's
something we care a lot about. Frame rate is much of
an issue, especially for those with older computers
like me.

[Tharwen]

This is sort of unrelated, but why are you splitting your lines up like that? Do you just have a really tiny monitor?

[knutor]

Of course, some things never (or take more than a thousand years) to
turn back into raw material. Glass is a good example of this... so are certain
metals that do not oxide much or at all such as steel.

One more reason for the many murky pools to become the breeding grounds for neutral gelatinous cubes, spheres and donuts on the odd years.  After a cube picks a dozen X(items)X it makes its way off the edge, or better yet, back into the nearest fully submerged murky place.  The color and alignment of the cubes further determined its habitat.  With none existing in frozen or scorching biomes.  Here in the extreme biomes, trash cooks or cracks apart into nothingness on its very own.

As for bone scavenging and the item, bone; I ask that they be further sub classified as either whole, gnawed, or broken. 

-Whole bones going into food recipes, gruel. 
-Gnawed bones, going into mortar, grout.
-Broken bones going into crafting, decorations.

What do you think?

Sincerely,
Knutor

[GreatWyrmGold]

Hm, the idea of oozes is cool, especially when you allow them to become different when they eat different stuff. Feed it silk, it becomes soft and cute, an excellent pet if small enough and an excellent trade good for the elves if not. Feed it skeletons, and it becomes hard, white, and creepy. Feed it live goblins, and it becomes bloody. Feed it iron, it becomes ironic. Feed it only (or in addition) water, and it becomes more fluidey and similar to how it sta...wait, I said "ironic?" I don't think that's what I meant.