No full-text available
To read the full-text of this research,
you can request a copy directly from the author.
A Fly for the Prosecution – How Insect Evidence Helps Solve Crimes
Abstract
/Users/leegoff/Desktop/Unavailable publication.docx
... Insects are almost the only evidence used to determine the time after death from the initial stage to the advanced stage of decay (Anderson, 2005;Slone et al, 2005). Therefore, it is one of the most sensitive methods used in the calculation of the postmortem time from the first day of death (Madea et al, 2002;Goff, 2001). ...
... Depending on the different decomposition stages of the corpse, different insect species reaching the corpse at each stage is called "insect succession" or "faunal succession". Jerry Payne, a PhD student in North Carolina, pioneered the concept of succession (Goff, 2001). Payne (1965) developed the approach model "The changes made by the organisms on the corpse attract the other organism group to the corpse. ...
... Based on this information, the order of arrival of the corpse is determined by determining the activities of the insects in the decomposed corpse". (Goff, 2001). ...
The aim of this thesis is the determinations of insects species of forensic importance in Kayserı province. The experimental part of our study was carried out between September 2018 – May 2019; during the periods of winter, spring, autumn seasons in four different regions. In this study, fresh cow liver and chicken muscle were used as the experimental materials. The traps which allow the insects to enter easily but which prevent exit were used to collect insect species. As a result, 21 species were identified in four different study areas. Calliphora vicina (Robineau-Desvoidy, 1830) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Lucilia sericata (Meigen, 1826) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann, 1819) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Muscina stabulans (Fallen, 1817) (Diptera: Muscidae), Musca autumnalis (De Geer,1776) (Diptera: Muscidae), were identified in fall season at all study areas. C. vicina was identified in winter season. C. vicina, Thricops sp. (Rondani, 1856) (Diptera: Muscidae), Fannia canicularis (Linnaeus, 1761) (Diptera: Fanniade), L. sericata, Dermestes frischii (Kugelann, 1792) (Coleoptera: Dermestidae), were identified in spring season at all study areas. C. vicina was seen from September to the end of May at all study areas. L. sericata was seen from September to the end of November and April to end of May at all study areas. Therefore, C. vicina and L. sericata can be used as an indicator species for determining the Postmortem Interval in Kayseri.
... Kısaca böcekler adli materyalin mekânsal ve zamansal bilgi kaynağıdır (Varatharajan, 2000). Dolasıyla ölümün ilk gününden itibaren ölüm sonrası geçen zamanın hesaplamalarında kullanılan en hassas yöntemlerden biridir (Madea vd, 2002;Goff, 2001). Diptera, Coleoptera, Akarlar gibi (Benecke, 2001a;Tabor vd, 2004) takımlara ait türlerden adli entomolojde yararlanılır (Bharti, 2003;Amendt vd, 2004a,b;Grassberger ve Frank, 2004). ...
... Kuzey Carolina'da doktora öğrencisi Jerry Payne süksesyon kavramına öncülük etmiştir (Goff, 2001). Payne (1960), "Cesede gelen organizmaların cesette yaptıkları değişiklikler, diğer organizma grubunu cesede çeker. ...
... Bu nedenle her bir organizma grubunun ceset üzerinde geçirdiği süre belirlenebilir. Bu bilgiye dayanarak çürümüş cesetteki böceklerin aktivitelerinin belirlenmesiyle, cesede geliş sıraları da belirlenmiş olur" yaklaşım modelini geliştirmiştir (Goff, 2001). ...
Adli Entomoloji
PostMortem İnterval
Böcek Faunası
... In other regions of the world, it has been found in many countries and places such as Costa Rica [59], Brazil [60,61], Thailand [29], Malaysia [62][63][64], Ishigaki Island of Japan [65], Norfolk Island [66], Hawaii [67] and North America, where it has been found from California [68] to Texas [69], and from North Carolina to Florida [10,41] (Fig. 9). ...
... This species is considered cosmopolitan [78], with a highly eusynanthropic character, being especially common in environments with a high anthropic influence [64,[79][80][81]. It is also known to be an initial colonizer of human corpses found indoors only in urban areas, being generally absent outdoors and in rural or natural areas [29,[62][63][64]67]. Huchet and Greenberg [75] found this species associated with human cadavers in archaeological contexts in Mexico and Peru, and recently Giordani et al. [82] found its puparia near the carcasses in a sacrifice of camelids in funerary rituals in Peru. ...
... Regarding medicolegal forensic entomology, this species is a useful tool and has been employed in legal investigations in many different parts of the world, including Brazil, Malaysia, India, Costa Rica, Thailand, Spain, Italy and the United States [28,29,32,33,38,41,59,62,63,67,102,103], and it has even been associated with human corpses in archaeological investigations in Mexico and Peru [75]. Specifically, S. nudiseta has been used to estimate the post-mortem (PMI) interval in South Carolina, USA [41] and in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia [33,104]. ...
Synthesiomyia nudiseta (van der Wulp, 1883) is a synanthropic muscid found in tropical and subtropical zones around the world. The larvae of this species are a secondary agent of myiasis with necrophagous habits and play an important role in forensic entomology, as they are used as an indicator of post-mortem interval. Adults can be considered vectors of etiological agents such as Escherichia coli and Shigella dysenteriae. Due to its ability to adapt to different environmental conditions, its high dispersal capacity (shown by its introduction to Europe), its predatory habits in the last larval stage and the difficulty of identifying it, a very important goal is to update our knowledge about this species. Therefore, the main objective of this paper is to review the identification, geographical distribution and biology of this species in order to provide better support to investigations involving this fly.
... Based on the order of their appearance, the post mortem changes classify as: 1-The fresh state (1 day in west Africa) is characterised by the absence of odour; 2-The turgid state (1-3 days in west Africa) is characterised by a swelling of the corpse; 3-Advanced putrefaction (3-8 days in west Africa) is defined by the disappearance of soft tissue; 4-The dry and skeletal state (from day 9 onwards) is characterised by the total disappearance of soft tissue and the presence of bones and nails (Goff, 2000;Dekeirsschieter, et al., 2012;Martin et al., 2020). ...
... Several Researchers have done many efforts to advocate and legitimize the application of entomology in death investigations in many place such as in Europe (Masselin, 1993;Wyss and Cherix, 2006), United States (Goff, 2000) and Canada (Anderson, 2001). ...
Forensic entomology is used in criminal investigations for post-mortem dating of cadavers. Our study aimed at examining the endogenous knowledge of necrophagous insects of six target groups of workers in two climatic zones of Burkina Faso for their application in criminal investigations, from exhumed and exposed corpses to the air. The survey was conducted among 223 informants splited in six target groups in four cities and eight villages belonging to Sudano-Sahelian and Sudanian climatic zones. Chi-square tests and principal component analysis (PCA) were performed to check for species diversity distributions significant differences in knowledge and climatic zones of study. The different phases of insect succession on post-mortem corpses were noted. The results showed that knowledge of the species varies from one species to another. The most cited species belong to the Calliphoridae (Diptera) family. Their larvae and pupae are present on open corpses at a frequency of 16.36%. On the other hand, Astrapaeus sp (Coleoptera) was found at 32.25% on the exhumed corpses. The citation of species also varied according to locality climatic zone and function of the informants. Traditional funeral workers and gravediggers cited more species than other justice actors. The species of Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedmann, 1819), Chrysomya sp. and Lucilia sp. are species found to be specific to the West African area and were mentioned for the first time in Burkina Faso. The knowledge of necrophagous insects by the informants in this survey opens new perspectives for entomological expertise in criminal investigations in Burkina Faso. Connaissances endogènes des insectes nécrophages en enquête criminelle dans les zones soudanienne et soudano-sahélienne du Burkina Faso. L'entomologie médico-légale est utilisée dans les enquêtes criminelles pour la datation post-mortem des cadavres. L'objectif de cette étude était d'évaluer les connaissances endogènes des insectes nécrophages de six groupes cibles de travailleurs dans deux zones climatiques du Burkina Faso en vue de leur application dans les enquêtes criminelles, à partir des cadavres exhumés et exposés à l'air. L'enquête a été menée auprès de 223 informateurs répartis en six groupes cibles dans quatre villes et huit villages appartenant aux zones climatiques soudano-sahéliennes et soudaniennes. Des tests du chi-carré et une analyse en composante principale (ACP) ont été effectués pour vérifier la diversité des espèces et les différences significatives. Les résultats ont montré que la connaissance des espèces varie d'une espèce à l'autre. Les espèces les plus citées appartiennent à la famille des Calliphoridae (Diptères). Leurs larves et nymphes sont présentes sur les cadavres à l'air libre à une fréquence de 16,36 %. Par contre, Astrapaeus sp (Coleoptera) a été trouvé à une frequence de 32,25 % sur les cadavres exhumés. La citation des espèces variait selon la localité, la zone climatique et la fonction des informateurs. Les travailleurs funéraires traditionnels et les fossoyeurs connaissent mieux les espèces que les acteurs de la justice. Les espèces Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedmann, 1819), Chrysomya sp. et Lucilia sp. sont des espèces infeodées à la zone ouest-africaine et ont été citées pour la première fois au Burkina Faso. La connaissance des insectes nécrophages ouvre de nouvelles perspectives pour l'expertise entomologique dans les enquêtes criminelles au Burkina Faso.
... This estimate can be achieved by obtaining knowledge of the identity of corpse-colonizing insects, the duration of their life cycle stages, and the sequence of colonization succession among taxa. Insects can also provide evidence of body movement from the primary death scene (Anderson 2001;Brown et al. 2010), drugs and other substances (by analysing gut contents of immature) (Pounder 1991;Gagliano-Candela and Aventaggiato 2001), and sites of traumatic wounds inflicted prior to death (Goff 2010). ...
... They may have been introduced to the Neotropics through migration and live animal export (Laurence 1986). Chrysomya rufifacies larvae tend to prey on other larvae (Byrd and Castner 2010), especially those of C. megacephala during the later stages of development (Goff 2001). Cochliomyia macellaria is native to the Neotropics, observed in abundance during periods of rain in the Southern United States, and can be found on decomposing tissue outdoors in sunny and shaded areas (Byrd and Castner 2010). ...
Flies of the family Calliphoridae, commonly called blow flies, are important in the decomposition process. Knowledge on their succession pattern on corpses, species identification and the duration of their life cycle stages can be useful in forensic investigations especially when estimating the post-mortem interval. We performed linear-based morphometrics on the cephalopharyngeal skeleton of four blow fly species found in Jamaica to distinguish species and determine larval development stage. We collected eggs from pigs’ heads used as bait in the field and conducted rearing exercises in the laboratory. We used the internal skeletonized structure, the cephalopharyngeal skeleton, to develop a practical and efficient method for species identification. For the first instar, we found species can be differentiated using all the measurements analysed in the study. We found that the mouth hook length may be useful in distinguishing larvae in the second instar. For the larvae in the third instar, the whole length of the skeleton, from mouth hook to length of the dorsal cornue, may be useful for separating species. We provide information on the cephalopharyngeal skeleton of Lucilia lucigerens (James), a blow fly species endemic to Jamaica, for the first time. Our work provides relevant information that could be utilized for species identification and life stage determination if fly evidence is to be incorporated in forensic investigations in Jamaica.
... (Universidad Nacional de Cordova UNC 2010), making use of the polynomial linear regression analysis with the leastsquares method (Yusseff 2007), with a 95% confidence interval. The calculation of the accumulated degree-hours (ADH) was performed as established by Goff (2001) and likewise, an ADH comparison of our results with other previously published studies of C. rufifacies (Yusseff 2007, García-Espinoza et al. 2012, Flores et al. 2014, Bauer et al. 2020) was made and an analysis of variance (ANOVA) of one way was performed for the comparison in development time of samples from control jars versus trial samples with "Past version 3" (Hammer et al. 2001). ...
... The data generated on the larval age provide us with the number of hours that the larva used to complete its larval development and together with the average daily temperature, allow us to calculate the accumulated degree-hours (ADH) (Goff 2001) and obtain the period of time that a corpse has been available to insects and that can be useful in estimating the PMI. This method has been useful, particularly in corpses that have begun decomposition, especially when they are in stages such as bloated, active decay, and advanced decay, where conventional chronotanatodiagnosis methods are less effective (Kashyap and Pillay 1989, Sharma et al. 2015, Pittner et al. 2020. ...
Adult Calliphoridae flies, as well as their immature stages collected from carcasses, have been used as evidence in forensic investigations to estimate the postmortem interval (PMI), particularly those of the genus Chrysomya as it is one of the first genera to colonize a corpse. Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart 1842), due to its appearance in cadaveric remains, plays a fundamental role in the study of forensic entomology. For this reason, we determined the biological cycle of C. rufifacies under semicontrolled laboratory conditions: uncontrolled average fluctuating temperature of 29. 76 ± 3. 22°C, uncontrolled average fluctuating humidity of 48. 91 ± 11.13%, and a controlled photoperiod of 12/12 (L/O). We established that the total development time from oviposition to adult emergence of C. rufifacies was 6. 5 d. The eggs took 12 h to hatch after oviposition. The complete larval stage took 60 h (instar 1 = 12 h, instar 2 = 12 h, instar 3 = 24 h, instar 3 post-feeding = 12 h). The pupa had a duration of 84 h. The species needed a total of 4642.8(±4.59) accumulated degree-hours (ADH) to complete its biological cycle.
... Anyone involved in death investigations quickly becomes aware of the connection between dead bodies and maggots [1]. ...
... A decomposing body is in some ways like a barren volcanic island that has recently emerged from the ocean [1]. The island is a resource, isolated from similar areas, waiting to be colonized by plants and animals. ...
Forensic entomology is a scientific discipline which has a multidisciplinary character due to the use of entomology in solving a variety of problems that arise during forensic research. It includes the identification of individual species and developmental stages of insects, the relationship between insects and external factors, determining the time of death, etc. This paper aims to briefly describe the role of forensic entomologists in court proceedings. Keywords: Entomology; Insects; Forensics; Forensic Entomology; PMI
... Flies belonging to the Family Sarcophagidae are important forensic indicators in evaluating human decomposition as they can detect a corpse within few minutes after death at several kilometers (Goff, 2000). Sarcophagidae comprises of 3 subfamilies, Miltogrammatinae, Paramacronychiinae and Sarcophaginae (Nandi, 2002) and represents over 3100 described species belonging to 400 genera and representatives of this family have world wide geographic distribution with most species occurring either in tropical or warm temperate regions (Vairo et al., 2015). ...
... Family Sarcophagidae is an important forensic indicator in evaluating human decomposition as its representatives can detect a dead body within few minutes after death at several kilometers (Goff, 2000). The sarcosaprophagous species larviposit on decaying bodies and within a few hours the larvae begin to develop by feeding off the cadaver while a few species feed on open wounds of vertebrates causing myiasis (Singh and Garg, 2009). ...
Objective
Sarcophaga dux Thomson is a well-known flesh fly species of medicinal and forensic importance and remain active throughout the year. Female of this fly lays first instars directly onto the carcass or on wounds of living host as it causes myiasis. Use of S. dux in forensic investigations is limited because identification of immature stages as well as adults by conventional means is very challenging.
Methods
To overcome this limitation, the adults of S. dux were collected and reared under laboratory conditions. Immature stages were analyzed by using scanning electron microscopy and male genitalic characters were analyzed by light microscopy. Adults were identified on the basis of male genitalic characters whereas, immature stages like larva and pupa were identified on the basis of various taxonomic characters i.e. cephaloskeleton, anterior and posterior spiracles, appearance of spiracular cavity, papillae on the caudal segments and shape/arrangements of spines.
Results and Conclusion
Through present study an effort was made for accurate identification of immatures and adults of this flesh fly species of medical and forensic importance. Illustrations presented here will help in forensic investigations in cases involving this flesh fly species.
... Next, we used the equation presented by [20] and performed the calculation of the ADH obtained by the time of daily development in hours and the mean temperature of this exposure period, as already performed by [20] and [21]. After that, the daily ADH is summed until the value equals the expected ADH. ...
... Next, we used the equation presented by [20] and performed the calculation of the ADH obtained by the time of daily development in hours and the mean temperature of this exposure period, as already performed by [20] and [21]. After that, the daily ADH is summed until the value equals the expected ADH. ...
As moscas constituem uma classe importante de insetos para a entomologia forense. Eles são os primeiros a colonizar o corpo e são os mais representativos durante a decomposição. Esses insetos são usados principalmente para a estimativa do intervalo post-mortem (PMI), bem como um indicador de morte violenta ou natural. Assim, este estudo relata, pela primeira vez, o uso de dados entomológicos como ferramenta complementar para auxiliar na elucidação de uma investigação criminal realizada no Estado de Mato Grosso do Sul, na região centro-oeste do Brasil. Neste caso de homicídio, cinco espécies de Diptera pertencentes a duas famílias, Muscidae e Calliphoridae, foram coletadas e identificadas. O cálculo de Grau-Hora Acumulado (ADH) foi realizado utilizando a taxa de desenvolvimento de Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius, 1974), obtida de pesquisas realizadas em condições de laboratório, na mesma temperatura em que as espécies e o corpo foram submetidos. Com base na idade das larvas e seu padrão alimentar, os resultados permitiram estimar o IPMmin e, portanto, inferência sobre a natureza do crime. Nossos resultados demonstram que as moscas podem ser usadas como evidência em investigações criminais, indicando o potencial da entomologia forense na região.
... Although FE has just recently received attention, it has its beginnings throughout history at various times. It was first reported to have been used in 13 th Century (McKnight, 1981;Goff, 2000;Benecke, 2001Benecke, & 2008Guppy. 2001 andAmendt et al., 2004). ...
... Several factors that influence the decomposition process were reported and discussed by some authors (Coe, 1978;Mann et al., 1990;Goff, 2000;Guppy, 2001 andSonker et al., 2018), these are: (1) The state of the body is one factor that determines its invasion by insect fauna. If the body has no open wounds, the orifices such as the mouth, ears, and genitals are the first areas to be invaded. ...
The present paper reviews the different aspects of forensic entomology (definition, history, carrion’s decomposition stages, and their associated insects/arthropods, utility in solving crimes, methods of collecting entomological evidence at death site and situation in Egypt). These are important information for interesting people and officials who are willing to make use of such aspect as a helping tool to solve crimes.
... As such, the most relevant families are Calliphoridae, Sarcophagidae, Muscidae, Fanniidae, Phoridae, and Piophilidae (Byrd & Castner, 2001). The fly species distribution may differ depending on the type of habitat, the trophic source, the environmental conditions, and the time of year, among other factors (Goff, 2000). In addition, cosmopolitan fly species may present with variations in their biology, such as different behaviours depending on their biogeographic origin, or differences in their developmental duration due to climatic conditions (Martínez-Sánchez et al., 2007). ...
The estimation of the postmortem interval (PMI) is an essential information in death investigations. It is necessary to know the developmental data of the most important necrophagous insect species in every geographical area. Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius, 1794) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) is one of the most common species associated with human body decomposition, especially in the tropics, so a precise knowledge of its life cycle is crucial. However, despite its ubiquity, developmental data in a range of tropical temperatures is scarce. For this reason, the aim of this study is to provide the developmental data of the blowfly, C. megacephala, in a range of tropical temperatures and to apply these data in forensic entomology. Four temperatures were examined (i.e., 27.0°C 29.5°C, 32.0°C and 34.5°C) and the time of developments from egg to adult were recorded. To build the growth curves, five larvae per day were measured with a digital caliper. Accumulated degree-days were calculated and the isomorphen diagram for this species was plotted. As we predicted, the results showed that the life cycle of this species was affected by the increasing temperature. The implications of these new data for determining the minimum PMI in forensic entomology were discussed.
... and also highlight their importance in forensic entomology as they are used as evidence in criminal investigations that includes an important aspect of the assessment. The post-mortem interval (PMI), therefore, there must be extensive knowledge of local insects and their association with carrion at different stages of decomposition and under different conditions [6][7][8]. ...
The research conducted aimed to diagnosis the species belonging to the Histeridae family in Karbala city - Iraq. During this experiment, in dog carcasses to four seasons from 2018-2019. Four environmentally different areas have been identified within Karbala governorate to know distribution of insects and the time of their presence on the dead body during the different stages of decomposition. The results of research indicated that two genera and two species of this family, Euspilotus richteri Lwes, 1907 and Saprinus subnitescens Bickhardt, 1909 were recorded in the final stages of decomposition of corpses but in different proportions, as well as most of which were at the stage of dry decomposition of the corpse in the spring and autumn seasons. Regarding the genus, Euspilotus richteri Lwes, 1907, it was recorded for the first time in Iraq through this research.
... Forensic entomology is the study of insects and arthropods who visit corpses [1]. They includes an important aspect of discretion Post-Mortem Interval (PMI) based on arthropods associated with cadavers, involves extensive knowledge of local insects and their association with carrion at different stages of decomposition and under different conditions [2], [3]. In recent years, high temperatures have affected the distribution of these insects [4]. ...
The aim of this is to diagnosis the species belong to the family Piophilidae by conducting a survey on animal carcasses in four regions of Karbala city to know their distribution and the time of presence on the body during the different stages of decomposition. In this experiment, dog carcasses were used to find out the types of insects that were attracted to the corpse during four seasons. The results showed the genus Parapiophila Hendel, 1917, was recorded for the first time in Iraq at the first three stages of decomposition, but in different proportions, most of which were in the wet decomposition stage during the spring and autumn seasons.
... Several workers have done many efforts to advocate and legitimize the application of entomology in death investigations in many places such as in Europe [15,16] United States [17] and Canada [3]. ...
Forensic entomology is used in criminal investigations for post-mortem dating of cadavers. The aims of this study was to evaluate the endogenous knowledge of necrophagous insects of six target groups of workers in two climatic zones of Burkina Faso for their application in criminal investigations. The survey was conducted among 223 informants splited in six target groups in four cities and eight villages belonging to Sudano-Sahelian and Sudanian climatic zones. The study was conducted on the knowledge of necrophagous insects from exhumed and exposed corpses to the air. Chi-square tests and principal component analysis (PCA) were performed to check for species diversity distributions significant differences in knowledge and climatic zones of study. The different phases of insect succession on post-mortem corpses were cited.
The results showed that knowledge of the species varies from one species to another. The most cited species are Calliphoridae larvae and pupae with a frequency of citation of 16.54% for open corpses Astrapaeus sp. with a frequency of citation of 32.25% for exhumed corpses. The citation of species also varied according to locality climatic zone and function of the informants. Traditional gravediggers and funeral workers cited more species than other justice actors. The species of Chrysomya sp. and Lucilia sp. are species found to be specific to the West African area and were mentioned for the first time in Burkina Faso. The knowledge of necrophagous insects by the informants in this survey opens new perspectives for entomological expertise in criminal investigations in Burkina Faso.
... Blowflies are usually the first organisms to arrive at a corpse, sometimes within minutes of death and they are also the species of greatest forensic importance (Goff, 2000;Arnaldos et. al., 2005). ...
... This similar distribution pattern might be explained by uniformity in the environmental conditions across the sites. Diptera and Coleoptera which are the two most abundant insect order of forensic importance were also observed in the abattoirs visited and this is consistent with other research studies (Smith, 1986;Goff, 2001). ...
... The species Synthesiomyia nudiseta (van der Wulp, 1883) is a wide distributed in the tropical and subtropical regions of the old and new world (1) . This fly has contributed to criminal investigations for many countries such as Costa Rica, India, Malaysia, Thailand, and USA (2)(3)(4)(5)(6)(7)(8)(9) . This species has been recorded in numerous studies on human bodies in Mexico and Peru (10) . ...
The present study aimed to investigate Synthesiomyia nudiseta (van der Wulp, 1883) in the carcasses of dogs and rats in four different localities of Kerbala governorate. during four seasons. The results indicated the appearance of S. nudiseta only in the spring and autumn seasons within the urban and agricultural areas, as well as the appearance of this species on the bodies of dogs only without rats. Taxonomy and morphological futures were described. S. nudiseta is belonging to the family Muscidae (Order: Diptera) is described as a first time recorded in Iraqi entomofuna. The specimens wear collected from carcasses of dogs and rats at agriculture and urban regions of Kerbala city. The diagnostic characters and mean morphological features were photoed.
... Blowflies are usually the first organisms to arrive at a corpse, sometimes within minutes of death and they are also the species of greatest forensic importance (Goff, 2000;Arnaldos et. al., 2005). ...
... Thus, its distribution is currently concentrated in the Western Palearctic (Ivorra et al. 2021). This species is of considerable medical and veterinary importance because it acts as a mechanical vector of helminths, bacteria, and viruses (Greenberg 1971); the larvae of this muscid can produce facultative myiasis in humans (Siddons and Roy 1942, James 1947, Greenberg 1971, Skidmore 1985, Bernhardt et al. 2019; and finally, it can be used to help estimate the post-mortem interval in forensic cases (Jirón et al. 1983, Lord et al. 1992, Goff 2000, Oliveira-Costa et al. 2001, Lee et al. 2004, Sukontason et al. 2007, Kumara et al. 2009, Syamsa et al. 2012, 2015, Velásquez et al. 2013, Lo Pinto et al. 2017. Preliminary studies of the life table of S. nudiseta have been published previously in Brazil (d' Almeida et al. 1997, Krüger et al. 2008, Venezuela (Rabinovich 1970), and Malaysia (Aruna Devi et al. 2011). ...
To better understand the population dynamics and dispersal ability of insect species, it is often helpful to derive a life table containing fundamental demographic data. The aim of this study was to determine a life table for the predatory necrophagous species Synthesiomyia nudiseta (van der Wulp, 1883) on a pig liver diet and under controlled laboratory conditions (29.5 ± 2. 5°C, RH 50 ± 15%, and a photoperiod of 12:12). This species has medical and veterinary importance and its distribution extends in tropical and subtropical areas and now it has been established in the southwestern of Europe. The mean adult longevity was 36. 18 ± 2. 06 d and the net reproduction rate, R, was 27.65 offspring/female, the mean generation time, T, was 22. 09 d, the finite rate of increase, λ, was 1. 16 d-1, and the intrinsic rate of increase, r, was 0. 15 d-1. These results indicate that S. nudiseta cannot be considered an r-strategist as the most common synanthropic necrophagous blowflies due to its predatory behavior; however, its invasive and colonist abilities are discussed. This is the first life table study of this species from Palearctic region to analyze the effect of its dispersal ability.
... Blow flies are a group of dipteran frequently found at the death crime scene. In this group of hairy maggots, (Lord, 1990;Goff, 2000;Byrd & Castner, 2001;Sukontason et al., 2001), Chrysomya villeneuvi Patton in Thailand and Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann) in Africa (Baumgartner,1993;Carvalho et al., 2000). Chrysomya bezziana (Villeneuve) and Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius) are widely distributed throughout tropical areas in the Old World including India but their larvae are smooth, lacking obvious body tubercle except on the last segment ( Sutherst R.W 1989). ...
Determination of post mortem interval (PMI) using forensic entomology tool is equally important in investigating wildlife crime as in human death. This is the first report of an ongoing study of insect succession on tiger bodies in Rajasthan and describes the identification of insect species through larval stage and its use in determining time of death of two tiger cubs in Ranthambhore and a tiger in Sariska national park of Rajasthan during 2010. Interestingly in both cases similar hairy maggots were observed. With the help of oldest stage i.e. third instar of maggot and available database, post-mortem interval of dead bodies of tiger of Sariska and two tiger cubs of Ranthambhore was estimated. On the basis of specific morphology of maggots, these were identified as hairy maggots of Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart) (Diptera: Calliphoridae).
... F orensic entomology is the science enlightening forensic cases by examining the arthropods coming to corpses in the estimation of the minimum post-mortem interval (Amendt et al., 2004(Amendt et al., , 2007Benecke, 2005;Goff, 2001;Marhoff et al., 2016). Different species feed on cadavers in different phases of decomposition depending on their biological structures. ...
The aim of the present study was to identify the urban blowfly species having forensic importance on Ankara University Medical Faculty Cebeci Campus in Ankara. Eight small liver bait traps were used for catching flies. Chicken liver was used in the study to attract blowflies. Eggs and larvae of the flies that oviposited on the liver were raised and identified. Six different indices were used to determine diversity (Shannon-Wiener [H’], Simpson Dominance [Sd], Simpson Diversity [S], Margalef Species Richness Indices, Pielou’s Evenness [EH], and Simpson Resiprocal Indices). Calliphora vicina (Robineau-Desvoidy), Calliphora vomitoria (Linnaeus), Lucilia sericata (Meigen) and Lucilia richardsi (Collin) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) were identified. C. vicina was found in whole year in 2012 and 2015. All of the fly species identified have forensic importance. The highest taxa richness was observed in 2012, in May (307; 73.80%), while the lowest was in March (23; 5.53%). The highest taxa richness was observed in June (544; 21.92%), while the lowest was in January (6; 0.24%) in 2015. Macro and micro climatic factors and biodiversity of the fauna are significant for solving suspect entomological cases.
... Forensic entomology represents the application of the study of insects (and other arthropods) to legal issues [4]. The most common use of entomological evidence in medicolegal investigations is the estimation of the time that has passed since death, which is referred to as the postmortem interval (PMI) [5]. ...
While the earliest record of forensic entomology originated in China, related research did not start in China until the 1990s. In this paper, we review the recent research progress on the species identification, temperature-dependent development, faunal succession, and entomological toxicology of sarcosaprophagous insects as well as common applications of forensic entomology in China. Furthermore, the difficulties and challenges forensic entomologists face in China are analyzed and possible countermeasures are presented.
... When a human remain is discovered, one of the main concerns of death investigators is the postmortem interval (PMI; Goff 2000). Compared with forensic pathology, forensic entomology offers the advantage that it has extended the estimation window of PMI to a relatively wider range (Tomberlin and Benbow 2015). ...
Hydrotaea spinigera Stein is a necrophagous species, widely distributed in Oriental and Australasian regions. Considering that the postfeeding larvae or puparia of this species can still be found in abundance at the advanced decomposition stage or even the skeleton stage of remains, it can serve as a good supplementary indicator for estimating the minimum postmortem interval (PMImin). This could also extend the range of PMImin when the primary colonizers are no longer associated with the corpse or have emerged as adults. This study investigated the development duration, accumulated degree hours, and larval body length changes of H. spinigera at seven constant temperatures ranging from 16 to 34°C, and established three development models for estimating PMImin, including isomorphen diagram, isomegalen diagram, and thermal summation model. At 16, 19, 22, 25, 28, 31, and 34°C, the development durations of H. spinigera from egg to adult stage were 1,412.6 ± 62.9, 867.4 ± 14.9, 657.1 ± 22.9, 532.3 ± 10.1, 418.8 ± 21.3, 379.8 ± 16.6, and 340.0 ± 20.3 h, respectively. The lower developmental threshold L0 was estimated as 10.50 ± 0.20°C, and the thermal summation constant K was 7,648.83 ± 146.74 degree hours. Using regression analysis, equations were obtained modeling the change of larval body length with time after hatching at different temperatures. This study provided basic data based on the growth and development of H. spinigera for the estimation of PMImin in forensic science.
... Most of the cases were in the hotter months that agreed with the studies showed the acceleration of decomposition in hot environments, and its deceleration in cold climates (Rodriguez and Bass, 1983;Mann et al., 1990;Bass, 1997;Clark et al., 1997;Galloway, 1997;Sledzik, 1998;Carter et al., 2008). In this study, bodies found to decompose more rapidly in the sunlight than those in the shade that disagreed with Goff (2000) who observed that the sun versus shade has no true effect on the overall rate of decomposition and agreed with Byrd and Castner (2001) who observed that the temperature is affected by the amount of sun. ...
... Therefore, over the years, most estimations of PMI min have been based on the developmental time of necrophagous flies at immature stages. Moreover, forensic entomology research is dominated by studies on necrophagous flies [7][8][9][10][11]. ...
After the death of humans or animals, the odors released at different stages of decay attract various insects, and other arthropods, to the corpses. Therefore, the development of insects, and other arthropods present on corpses, can be assessed to estimate the minimum postmortem interval since death. In general, necrophagous blow flies are the insects that first colonize corpses. With progressing decay, other necrophagous and predatory insects arrive at the corpses, which will develop on or around these either by feeding directly on the corpses or by prey on other immature insects. Beetles (Coleoptera) mainly arrive at the corpses during the later stages of decay, and play important roles in cases with longer postmortem intervals. Necrobia rufipes (De Geer, 1755) (Coleoptera: Cleridae) is an important stored-product species with world-wide distribution. Moreover, it is also a forensically important insect species. At temperatures of 22, 25, 28, 31, 34, and 36 °C (±0.5 °C), the developmental periods from egg to adult were 113.20 ± 2.96, 66.16 ± 3.22, 50.61 ± 1.95, 38.26 ± 2.48, 37.97 ± 2.40, and 31.20 ± 2.11 days, respectively. In vivo measurements obtained the morphological indexes of larvae. The growth curve and the equation of the relationship between development time, body lengths, and mesonotum widths were simulated. The isomorphen diagram model, the isomegalen diagram model, and the thermal summation model were established. In addition, the widths of head capsules and pronota of larvae at different instars were determined by cluster analysis. Classifiers were created and validated by linear discriminant analysis.
... In 1668, Francesco Redi refuted the hypothesis of the spontaneous generation of life after the analysis of the results of his experiments in which rotting meat was either exposed to or protected from flies [16] . Redi proved by his experiments that maggots come from fly eggs deposited on rotten meat or putrefying carcasses [17,18,19] . ...
Forensic science is the application of scientific techniques and principles to provide evidence to legal or related investigations and determinations. The importance of forensic science in solving crimes has been increasing noticeably. Insects are usually the first organisms to arrive on a body after death, and they colonize in a predictable sequence. Carrion (dead tissue) feeding blow flies (Calliphoridae) and flesh flies (Sarcophagidae) are those most useful in death investigations. Entomological evidence collected from a corpse can be used to make inferences about the location or cause of death, but is most frequently used to estimate the time of death. Upon death, the putrefaction of a body attracts a variety of large scavengers and smaller arthropods. Observations of the insect fauna taken at the time of the corpse's discovery can be used to estimate the amount of time that has passed since death, commonly referred to as the post-mortem interval (PMI). The study of the entomo-fauna associated with cadavers has been an extremely effective tool to clarify numerous cases of homicides, sexual abuses and traffic of organs. Today, forensic entomology is not limited to finding PMI only. A forensic entomologist has acquired an important role in death investigation like finding time since death, season of death, geographical location of death, movement or storage of remains after death, time of decapitation or dismemberment, submersion interval, specific sites of injury on the body, post-mortem artifacts on the body and the crime scene, use of drugs, sexual molestation, identification of suspects. As part of the forensic team, have necessitated the need for an increase in awareness of emerging sciences like forensic entomology and its applications in forensics.
... This corroborates the findings of Hopkins [25] and Pascual et al. [32] who stated the important role of enteric soil bacterial in the decay of animal tissues. Also, Goff [40] reported that associated soil microbes can remain in the location for several months or years after death, depending on the indigenous environmental factors. This is in line with Kaiko and Stappenbeck [27] who reported complexity in microbial interactions and successions for effective breaking down of animal tissues to derive nutrients for growth and this can be influenced by environmental conditions. ...
This study investigated the effects of pig feed contaminated with lead (Pb) on the decomposition rate of pig carrion, identified the aerobic microorganisms and necrophagous insects associated with decomposing pig (Sus scrofa) carrion (above ground), and explored their potential use in the determination of post-mortem interval (PMI). The study profiled the decomposition of Sus scrofa carrion over a period of 40 days to record the effects of lead during decomposition. Fungi were identified by sub-culturing on prepared solidified potato dextrose agar and microbial identification was carried out using biochemical characterization. The decomposition rate of pigs fed with lead-contaminated feed (0.18 and 0.2 ppm) attracted insects and increased the rate of hair fall, hence at day 35, these carrion were skeletonized. The aerobic bacterial communities identified were Staphylococcus aureus, Bacillus sp. and Salmonella paratyphiwhereas the fungi identified include Fusarium sp., Cylindrocladium sp Cephalosporium sp., Scopolariopsis sp., Aspergillus sp, Mucor sp., Circinella sp., Pythium sp., Penicillium sp., Trichoderma sp., Geotrichum sp., Phytophthora sp., and Saccharomyces sp. The necrophagous insects collected consisted of three orders: Coleoptera, Diptera, and Hymenoptera which included insects like Chrysomya chloropyga Wiedemann, 1818, Musca domesticaLinnaeus, 1758, Sarcophaga exuberansPandelle, 1896, Necrobia rufipesDe Geer, 1775, Dermestes maculatusDe Geer, 1774, Camponotus sericeusFabricius, 1798 and Camponotus perrisiiForel, 1886. The activity of insect on treatments was well matched but the decomposition rate differs. Spectrophotometric analysis of insect larvae collected from decomposing pigs revealed they had presence of lead. Insect larvae and microbes identified are good entomotoxicological tools in crimes associates with lead poisoning.
... The following study was conducted under the assumption that storage significantly slowed the decomposition process and maggot development (Goff 2000) between time of death and placement outdoors, making this gap between death and placement inconsequential. However, it should be noted that researchers have proposed that maggots can still develop significantly under refrigerated conditions and have found that decomposition still progresses, albeit slowly, when a body is stored in refrigerated facilities (Huntington et al. 2007). ...
https://digital.library.txstate.edu/handle/10877/4072
Estimating the postmortem interval (PMI), or how much time has passed since an individual died, is an important aspect of investigating a death. Traditionally, forensic anthropologists have relied on non-standardized decomposition stages, anecdotal evidence, and personal experience to make an estimation of the PMI (Love and Marks 2003). Decomposition sequences have been proposed for specific geographic regions (Mann et al. 1990; Galloway 1997; Komar 1998; Rhine and Dawson 1998; Love and Marks 2003), but these stages may not be applicable to different climates and most were developed from cross-sectional data (Galloway et al. 1989; Komar 1998; Rhine and Dawson 1998). xii Recently, Megyesi et al. (2005) developed a quantitative method of estimating the PMI using accumulated degree-days (ADD), temperature data, and total body score (TBS), a system of numerically ranked qualitative observations of decomposition. This method was developed from cross-sectional data and has never been tested in a longitudinal experimental study using human cadavers. In addition, scavenging and its effect on using ADD to estimate the PMI has not been addressed (Simmons et al. 2010a). The present study tested Megyesi et al.'s (2005) model of scoring decomposition and its relationship to ADD using human cadavers. The goals of this study were to test the system outlined by Megyesi et al. (2005) using longitudinal data and examining the decomposition process directly. This study examined the assumption that all of the stages and decomposition characteristics used by Megyesi et al. (2005) and based on Galloway et al.'s (1989) decomposition stages follow a sequential order. The degree in which scavenging animals in this environment affect the decomposition rate and the estimation of ADD from TBS was incorporated. From November 2009 to July 2010, 10 donated human cadavers were placed outdoors at the Forensic Anthropology Research Facility (FARF) at Texas State University-San Marcos. Decomposition was ranked using the TBS system for each day of observation over time. Observations support the general decomposition stages found in high temperature and high humidity environments (Galloway et al. 1989; Galloway 1997) with accelerated autolysis, high rates of maggot activity when scavengers are controlled for, and rapid skeletonization. TBS, however, is not linear, with changes in certain decomposition characteristics able to influence the observer's recorded TBS. xiii Statistically significant differences were found between the estimated ADD and the actual mean ADD for each major decomposition stage. The differences were still significant after cadavers that were scavenged were removed from analysis, meaning that these differences were not caused by scavengers alone. In this study, longitudinal data collection allowed for a comparison between scavenged and non-scavenged human bodies. Scavenged bodies had significantly lower ADD (i.e. faster rates) to reach major decomposition stages than protected cadavers. This study shows in a quantitative manner that scavenging animals can have a significant impact on the estimation of the PMI from ADD. Exact binomial tests tested the rate of the equation produced by Megyesi et al. (2005) to successfully predict ADD against an expected success rate. The method had 100% accuracy rates for decomposition scores less than 22, but this was found to be indicative of a lack of precision stemming from a large standard error. Bodies skeletonized much faster than what was estimated with the equation, and the low success rates for scores 22 and above make the equation not recommended for severely decomposed remains. Only score 23 effectively predicted ADD from TBS (~90%), but all successes were recorded from one donation. The results of this study demonstrate that different environments may contain significant variables that the Megyesi et al. (2005) decomposition scoring system does not specifically address. In addition, low success rates for the Megyesi et al. (2005) equation to predict ADD from TBS above 22 and the wide standard error ranges provided demonstrate the need to reevaluate the equation for PMI estimation from TBS.
... The five stages of body decomposition have been of prime interest for scientists over a long period of time, and each phase is accompanied by a certain grouping of insects. The standard classification of Sarcosaprophagous fauna allocates them into five distinctive ecological groups: necrophagous (carrion-feeder), necrophilous, omnivorous, opportunists, and accidentals (Goff, 2000). The necrophagous are those species which forage exactly on the body. ...
Abstract Background Forensic entomology is an increasing area of research, focuses on the violent crime, and deals with the necrophagous-feeding insects that typically decompose carcasses. The present study aimed to update the baseline data of the decay process and its associated successive waves of necrophagous flies on rabbits placed in an urban city (Cairo, Egypt) in spring season. Results Six rabbits divided equally into two groups were used. The first group was killed by asphyxia via hanging and marked as the control (C), while the second group was intoxicated with rodenticide warfarin (WI). The fresh, bloated, active decay, advanced decay, and skeletal stages of decomposition were observed and defined in all carcasses. Out of 30 insect families collected, 3 families were more common (Calliphoridae, Muscidae, and Sarcophagidae). Thirteen insect families were collected of which Calliphoridae, Muscidae, and Sarcophagidae were common. A total of 10,121 individuals (immature and adult stages) of 26 species were collected, of which Chrysomya rufifacies was the most common species on both types of carcasses (14.7%) followed by Musca domestica, Chrysomya megacephala, Chrysomya albiceps, Muscina stabulans, Sarcophaga hertipes, Calliphora vicina, Musca sorbens, Lucilia cuprina, Sarcophaga argyrostoma, and Lucilia sericata (2.0–12.4%). The other 15 species were represented by small numbers (cumulatively 2.9%). Among the collected flies, Scathophaga litorea (Scathophagidae) was reported for the first time as a new report in Egypt. Unexpectedly, significantly more adults and immatures were attracted to WI than to C carcasses (P
... Wrapping a cadaver blocks accessibility to suitable oviposition sites and can delay blowfly colonisation by 24 h or more [19]. In an unreplicated study, Goff [20] observed a delay of 2.5 days in fly attendance on pig cadavers wrapped in a heavy blanket. ...
Criminals have been known to dispose of bodies in zipped suitcases in an attempt to conceal murder. In order to investigate the forensic implications of this mode of disposal on calculating time of death, it is necessary to study the accessibility of bodies in suitcases to blowflies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) and the possibility of oviposition and infestation under these circumstances. An experimental apparatus was designed that incorporated different zips (toothed and coil) of various gauges (4-6 mm) above a chicken liver bait. Gravid Calliphora vomitoria and Calliphora vicina females were attracted to and oviposited on and through these zips, both under laboratory and field conditions. Egg laying was significantly more frequent and with greater numbers of eggs when zips were in contact with the bait than when they were placed approximately 6cm above the bait. In the absence of bait, adult females could be stimulated to lay eggs on moistened zips, although the presence of blood accelerated egg laying compared to water alone. No eggs were laid on dry zips in the absence of bait. Of the first instar larvae tested, 89% were able to colonise the bait below the zips by passing through gaps between the teeth. Preliminary field studies using suitcases baited with a pig's head indicated that there was a delay of 1-3 days in oviposition when compared to laboratory conditions. This information has practical value in explaining the presence of larvae on enclosed bodies in suitcases and will help forensic entomologists estimate a more accurate minimum time since death.
... However, forensic pathology methods are inaccurate for determining PMI after this time point, and entomological evidence on the corpse is the most reliable tool to estimate the PMI min Castner 2010, Amendt et al. 2011). Insect succession studies on corpses have found that blow flies are attracted to corpses almost immediately and oviposit shortly after death ( Goff 2000, Archer 2003, Grassberger and Frank 2004, Wang et al. 2008, Shi et al. 2010, Amendt et al. 2011, Wang et al. 2017). When the flies arrive at the corpse can be affected by numerous factors, including the weather, body concealment, and placement of the body indoors, exposed outdoors, buried, or burnt (Erzinclioglumainly from Calliphoridae, Sarcophagidae, and Muscidae, on the corpses ( Butler 1996, 1998;Campobasso et al. 2001;Grassberger and Reiter 2001;Sukontason et al. 2007;Wang et al. 2018a;Zhang et al. 2018). ...
The age of insects found on corpses is often used to estimate the minimum postmortem interval by forensic entomologists. Insect development is affected by biotic and abiotic factors, and temperature is the most important environmental factor that determines the length of insect development. Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) is a globally distributed fly that is commonly found on corpses, and this study investigated the development of C. rufifacies from China at various constant temperatures. At 16, 19, 22, 25, 28, 31, and 34°C, the developmental time from egg to adult was 870.17 ± 11.50, 566.20 ± 8.79, 406.38 ± 10.98, 291.14 ± 4.71, 232.59 ± 5.96, 192.47 ± 3.45, and 160.48 ± 7.15 h, respectively. We established three developmental models for C. rufifacies to estimate the age of the developing insect: the isomorphen diagram model, the isomegalen diagram model and the thermal summation model. Regression analysis was conducted to obtain the relationship between body length and development time of the larvae from hatching to wandering. The developmental threshold temperatures of the egg, 1st instar, 2nd instar, 3rd instar, and wandering larvae, and intra-puparial stages were 12.28 ± 0.30, 11.74 ± 0.95, 12.70 ± 0.55, 11.68 ± 0.96, 10.53 ± 1.53, and 12.51 ± 0.41°C, respectively. The developmental threshold temperature, and the thermal summation constant during the entire developmental period were 3759.95 ± 170.80 degree hours and 11.96 ± 0.38°C, respectively. This study provides an improved dataset to estimate the postmortem interval of corpses using C. rufifacies.
... Forensic entomology, the interpretation of insect evidence in legal investigations, became pop- ular in many countries as an important forensic tool at the beginning of the twenty-first cen- tury [1][2][3]. Sampling and identifying insects from a body, mainly species from the orders Diptera (flies) and Coleoptera (beetles), is helpful to estimate the minimum time since death (or minimum post-mortem interval) by evaluating the insect succession or by calculating the age of developing insects on a body [4]. Size (e.g. ...
The bluebottle blow fly Calliphora vicina is a common species distributed throughout Europe that can play an important role as forensic evidence in crime investigations. Developmental rates of C. vicina from distinct populations from Germany and England were compared under different temperature regimes to explore the use of growth data from different geographical regions for local case work. Wing morphometrics and molecular analysis between these populations were also studied as indicators for biological differences. One colony each of German and English C. vicina were cultured at the Institute of Legal Medicine in Frankfurt, Germany. Three different temperature regimes were applied, two constant (16°C & 25°C) and one variable (17-26°C, room temperature = RT). At seven time points (600, 850, 1200, 1450, 1800, 2050, and 2400 accumulated degree hours), larval lengths were measured; additionally, the durations of the post feeding stage and intrapuparial metamorphosis were recorded. For the morphometric and molecular study, 184 females and 133 males from each C. vicina population (Germany n = 3, England n = 4) were sampled. Right wings were measured based on 19 landmarks and analyzed using canonical variates analysis and discriminant function analysis. DNA was isolated from three legs per specimen (n = 61) using 5% chelex. A 784 bp long fragment of the mitochondrial cytochrome b gene was sequenced; sequences were aligned and phylogenetically analyzed. Similar larval growth rates of C. vicina were found from different geographic populations at different temperatures during the major part of development. Nevertheless, because minor differences were found a wider range of temperatures and sampling more time points should be analyzed to obtain more information relevant for forensic case work. Wing shape variation showed a difference between the German and English populations (P
... Forensic entomology is a broad and growing field, in which specialists are brought in to study insects when they pertain to a range of legal cases. As with forensic anthropology, the field has seen a number of mass market accounts written by practitioners (Goff 2000;Erzinçlioglu 2013). The most high-profile area of research is centered on medico-criminal forensic entomology, which deals with the investigation of felony crimes, including death investigations (Catts and Goff 1992). ...
The practices involved in forensic investigation center on a search for physical clues and traces that may be used to reconstruct past events. The forensic corpse is therefore involved in a materially grounded semiotics, which provides the basis for making claims about the past. Using the examples of forensic pattern matching (such as craniofacial mapping and fingerprints) and forensic entomology, I explore the different life worlds that emerge after a person’s death and how they are mobilized by forensic investigators. In this form of inquiry, claims to the real are articulated through the signs that different beings— whether human, insect, or microbe—perceive inhering in the corpse. Such forms of forensic investigation offer a productive site for thinking about the ontological status of fact and of the corpse in the context of posthumanism. Forensic signs stretch across our divided categories of the living and the dead, human and animal, nature and culture, providing alternate ways to conceptualize the relationships at play in such assemblages. © 2018 by Semiosis Research Center at Hankuk University of Foreign Studies. All rights reserved.
... However, the families of Calliphoridae, Sarcophagidae and Muscidae of Diptera and the families Silphidae, Staphylinidae, Cleridae and Dermestidae of Coleoptera are the most important families were used in forensic entomology (6). Although the decomposition is a continuous process [7] and starting at the point of death and ending when the body has become a skeleton [8], many authors have divided it into three to six distinguishable stages [9,11].Insects begin to arrive at a corpse in less than ten minutes after death [12]. Insect colonization can be found on bodies sealed in plastic bags, rugs and cars, on buried bodies and those which have been indoors and outdoors, this means that the insect evidence can be used in and over much longer periods of time and a wide variety of circumstances as opposed to other widely used methods for estimating the PMI [13]. ...
This study was conducted at the Department of Biology, Faculty of Science, Al-Kufa University, Al-Kufa City/Najaf-Iraq. The fauna of insects associated with rabbit carcasses(Lepus cuniculus) placed indoor and outdoor habitats, and their succession patterns were investigated. A total of 1589 adults and immature insects were collected during summer and autumn, 2016, representing in 3 orders and 7 families. Diptera, Coleoptera and Hymenoptera comprise79.11%, 12.21% and8.68% .A total of 630 insect specimens was collected from rabbit carcasses placed indoor. Diptera, Coleoptera and Hymenoptera comprised 80.2%, 11.7% and 8.1%, respectively. While, 959 insect specimens were collected from rabbit carcasses placed outdoor .Diptera, Coleoptera and Hymenoptera comprised 78.4%, 12.5% and 9.1%, respectively. Four stages of decomposition were observed fresh, bloated, decay and dry. The duration of it varies with temperature and relative humidity of each season. The total period of decomposition was 15 and 19 days during Summer in carcasses placed outdoor and indoor respectively (Mean temperature 40 °C and RH between 10% and 20%) ,while reaching 18 and 25 days during Autumn in carcasses placed outdoor and indoor respectively, (mean temperature 29°C and RH between 54% to 64% ).The results showed that the succession pattern of insect associated with the stages of decomposition was similar between indoor and outdoor habitats with differences in the timing of insect colonization were observed between the two habitats within trials for Summer and Autumn .Also, Chrysomya albiceps was the first insect attracting to the carcass during the fresh stage in both habitats and it was the most abundant fly colonized the carcasses in both habitats but most number at outdoor, followed by Musca domestica. In general, it was appeared that the numbers of forensic insect species which colonize rabbit carcasses were increased outdoor and decreased indoor. Moreover, they were higher numbers during the autumn season than the summer season.
... In general, Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius) is the dominant and first necrophagous species to infest decomposing human corpses (Lee et al., 2004) as well as animal models (Mahat & Jayaprakash, 2013;Mahat et al., 2016) in Peninsular Malaysia followed by Chrysomya rufifacies (Macquart). Moreover, these two forensically important necrophagous species are also ubiquitous in many Asian countries (Kurahashi et al., 1997), Hawaii (Goff, 2000) and several regions in Australia (Harvey et al., 2003). Since variations in species compositions and durations for completing life cycles for necrophagous insects attributable to differences in biogeoclimatic regions have been indicated, empirical baseline data established for one biogeoclimatic region may not be applicable for estimating PMI in other regions (Wells & Stevens, 2008). ...
Influence of citronella and chlorpyrifos on oviposition and duration for completing life cycles for Chrysomya megacephala and Chrysomya rufifacies infesting decomposing rabbit carcasses was studied. Male rabbit carcasses (n = 12) were equally divided into control, citronella-and chlorpyrifos-treated groups, and left to decompose for 14 consecutive days. C. megacephala was the first necrophagous fly oviposited in all control and citronella-treated carcasses followed by C. rufifacies. Although initial oviposition of C. megacephala was delayed (4-6 hours) in citronella-treated carcasses (P < 0.05), prolongation in completing its life cycle was not observed. Neither delayed initial oviposition nor prolonged life cycle for C. rufifacies in citronella-treated carcasses was observed. Oviposition was delayed for chlorpyrifos-treated carcasses (0.42 g/L), and eclosion of eggs remained unsuccessful. The findings deserve consideration because these chemicals are easily accessible and can be used by cunning criminals to confuse forensic entomologists while estimating minimum post-mortem interval.
... In Colombia, it is found in Boyacá and Cundinamarca departments (Hardy, 1966). S. magellanica was reported as the first species colonizing decomposing pigs in Bogotá (an animal bio-model similar to that of humans) (Goff, 2001). Its antibacterial activity has been confirmed, giving better results than those for L. sericata (Diaz-Roa et al., 2014) and it has already been evaluated regarding LT, leading to good effects concerning diabetic wound cicatrisation (Cruz-Saavedra et al., 2016) and in Leishmania lesions (Cruz-Saavedra et al., 2016). ...
Larval therapy (LT) is an alternative treatment for healing chronic wounds; its action is based on debridement, the removal of bacteria, and stimulating granulation tissue. The most important mechanism when using LT for combating infection depends on larval excretions and secretions (ES). Larvae are protected against infection by a spectrum of antimicrobial peptides (AMPs); special interest in AMPs has also risen regarding understanding their role in wound healing since they degrade necrotic tissue and kill different bacteria during LT. Sarconesiopsis magellanica (Diptera: Calliphoridae) is a promising medically-important necrophagous fly. This article reports a small AMP being isolated from S. magellanica ES products for the first time; these products were obtained from third-instar larvae taken from a previously-established colony. ES were fractionated by RP-HPLC using C18 columns for the first analysis; the products were then lyophilised and their antimicrobial activity was characterized by incubation with different bacterial strains. These fractions’ primary sequences were determined by mass spectrometry and de novo sequencing; five AMPs were obtained, the Sarconesin fraction was characterized and antibacterial activity was tested in different concentrations with minimum inhibitory concentrations starting at 1.2 μM. Potent inhibitory activity was shown against Gram-negative (Escherichia coli D31, E. coli DH5α, Salmonella enterica ATCC 13314, Pseudomonas aeruginosa 27853) and Gram-positive (Staphylococcus aureus ATCC 29213, S. epidermidis ATCC 12228, Micrococcus luteus A270) bacteria. Sarconesin has a significant similarity with Rho-family GTPases which are important in organelle development, cytoskeletal dynamics, cell movement, and wound repair. The data reported here indicated that Sarconesin could be an alternative candidate for use in therapeutics against Gram-negative and Gram-positive bacterial infections. Our study describes one peptide responsible for antibacterial activity when LT is being used. The results shown here support carrying out further experiments aimed at validating S. magellanica AMPs as novel resources for combating antibacterial resistance.
... Firstly, if the pattern of succession is known for a given set of circumstances, one may use it to estimate postmortem interval (PMI) with succession-based method (Goff and Flynn, 1991;Schoenly et al., 1992;Schoenly et al., 1996;Wells and LaMotte, 2001;Matuszewski et al., 2010). Secondly, knowledge on sequence and time of carcass colonization by immature of different taxa is necessary to properly place in time the minimum PMI estimated with development-based method (Smith, 1986;Benecke, 1998;Goff, 2000;Wells and LaMotte, 2001;Greenberg and Kunich, 2002;Arnados et al., 2005;Matuszewski et al., 2010). Succession studies need to be conducted in as many diverse geographic areas as possible, since there can be differences in insect fauna between geographic areas. ...
ABSTRACT In 2011 and 2012, seasonal field studies on vertebrate carrion decomposition and its associated arthropod fauna were carried out on sixteen healthy domestic rabbits, Oryctolagus cuniculus L., killed by asphyxia (control) and with different doses of a commonly used antidepressant drug amitriptyline (test). Amitriptyline involved in up to 33% of all fatal poisonings, second only to analgesics. Five decomposition stages were recognized: fresh, bloat, active decay, advanced decay and dry. Carcasses in summer and spring decayed at a much faster rate than in fall and winter. The presence of the amitriptyline in decomposing tissues, influences the development and pattern of carrion feeding insects and alter postmortem interval (PMI) estimates based on the rate of larval and puparial development. It should be pointed out that the presence of this drug alter the successional model in Alexandria, Egypt. Diptera was the predominant group, were as Coleoptera ranked 2nd. Calliphorids and Sarcophagids were the most important arthropod invaders of cacassess because of the influence they had on the rapid deterioration of the carcasses. It was of an interest to note that Formicidae was present in all carcasses, mostly in the early stages of decomposition. Carcasses which had been killed by different doses of amitriptyline were found to be unsuitable for certain flies. This study provide an additional knowledge in the context of Egyptian forensic entomology and the influence of amitriptyline which is of relevance to forensic science.
... Lucilia cuprina is considered an important forensic specie, since it has been frequently found associated with human and animal corpses according to many authors (Byrd and Castner, 2001;Early and Goff, 1986;Goff, 2000;Greenberg and Kunich, 2002;Smith, 1986). This fly is the dominant specie during the active decomposition stage, and is responsible for the removal of most of the tissue (Early and Goff, 1986). ...
The blowfly Lucilia cuprina is distributed worldwide and is a mechanical vector of pathogens. It can cause myiasis in humans and is strongly related to forensic entomology, as it is frequently found on human and animal corpses. However, most of the L. cuprina found on corpses are the immature stages of this fly. Correct identification is very important for forensic entomology but at present only the identification keys of adult L. cuprina are available. Thus, the aim of this paper was to describe and analyze the morphological characteristics of all larval instars and the puparia of L. cuprina using scanning electron microscopy (SEM).
... In this case, more or less characteristic decomposition stages are observed, as e.g. discussed in Payne [33] or Goff [48]. However, in our study, we exposed the carcasses unprotected. ...
Forensic entomology research in Malaysia started in the 1950s but research in this field is still scarce and limited to a few institutions. The objective of this study is to develop and validate a self-constructed questionnaire of the knowledge and perception of forensic entomology. A cross-sectional validation study among health-related undergraduate students was conducted at Universiti Teknologi MARA (UiTM) in Selangor, Malaysia. The knowledge and perception questionnaire on forensic entomology underwent a content development and validation process through a pilot and a field-testing study. Psychometric properties have been explored using Principal Component Analysis (PCA) with Varimax rotation, scree plot, eigenvalues, Monte Carlo simulation, suppress small coefficients value below 0.40, communalities, inter-item correlation, internal consistency, and test-retest analyses. The content of the knowledge and perception questionnaire for forensic entomology were conceptually equivalent. The questionnaire was refined after face validation by five students. The pilot testing was conducted on 30 students. The refined version was then field-tested among 232 students. The Kaiser–Meyer–Olkin (KMO) test was 0.868, and Bartlett’s test of sphericity was ≤ 0.001, indicating sampling adequacy. Two factors were identified which are knowledge and perception. The Cronbach’s α for knowledge and perception was 0.939 and 0.819, respectively. The intra-class correlation coefficient ranged from 0.493 to 0.923. The knowledge and perception questionnaire for forensic entomology is valid, reliable, and fairly stable over time. This questionnaire could be used to evaluate the levels of knowledge and perception on forensic entomology among undergraduate students in Malaysia.
In investigating cases of death, post-mortem interval (PMI) estimation is something that needs to be done to facilitate the investigation. Identification of post-mortem interval started from the time when the dead body was found. The main question is to identify the time of death. In reality, the task is complicated since many local factors are involved in the process of decomposition. In most cases, the decomposition process is done by certain local insects that consume the biomass completely. One of the widely used estimation methods is forensic entomology, where the estimation is based on the number of insect larvae found in the corpse. In this study, a mathematical model was built based on experimental data from references, which involved rabbit corpses as biomass with 2 different treatments, namely wrapped in sacks and unwrapped. We formulated a type of logistic model with decaying carrying capacity by diptera’s larvae. In the model, diptera’s larvae were divided into 3 different compartments according to the diptera life cycle. The post-mortem interval is shown as the end period of consumption when larvae have entirely consumed the biomass. It is shown from the simulation that the decomposition for the wrapped treatment lasted longer than the unwrapped treatment. This result of interval of post-mortem is sufficiently close to the experimental data from references
Insect behavior can be helpful to law enforcement in determining time of death, manner of death, location, and environment related to human or other animal victims found at a death scene. They may also provide clues about other aspects associated with an investigation (i.e., fly specks, suspect DNA). The study of how insects and related arthropods can aid in legal investigations is known as forensic entomology. Although this includes both civil applications, such as urban (i.e., maggots in mortuaries or insect structural damage) or stored product (i.e., illness from food contamination) entomology, this manual focuses on criminal applications, such as how insect evidence can be used at death scene investigations. One of the most important uses of entomological evidence for crime scene cases is in estimating time since death, or postmortem interval (PMI). Another related term, which is sometimes used interchangeably with PMI, and in other cases is used separately, is “time since colonization.” This is the time at which insects first colonize a dead body. Because blow flies visit a body often within minutes of death, it is reasonable that this would coincide with PMI. However, it is important to note that due to other factors such as temperature, location, weather conditions, and other variables, insect activity can accelerate or slow down and thus influence PMI. PMI can even be set back if animal predators find a corpse and feed on the flesh, inadvertently eating or destroying any insect eggs that have been laid on it. In this case, the earliest eggs to hatch on a body may be the offspring of insects that arrived later in the decomposition process rather than from initial insect visitors. If the body appears damaged by predator activity, the possibility of early colonizer larvae having been destroyed should be taken into consideration when making PMI estimations.
The taphonomy of human remains and associated funerary textiles are inevitably linked. The interplay among burial clothes, human remains, insects, rodents, and preservation is explored through study of a group of postmedieval burials in Finland. These burials have been either archaeologically excavated or inventoried beneath wooden church floors. Decay and preserving factors for various conditions are studied, allowing in-depth study of individual garments and identification of the burial season. In addition, research has revealed different factors that have an effect on future preservation of the burials under church floors.
Chrysomya megacephala (Diptera: Calliphoridae) also known as oriental latrine fly is blow fly species widely distributed in many parts of the world. This fly has forensic importance as it infests on carrion soon after death and helps not only to estimate the post-mortem interval (PMI) but also to detect poisoning in a putrefying body. The present study was carried out on morphological identification of Chrysomya megacephala using key Lutz, 2018 and Cytochrome C Oxidase (COI). The special attention was focused on the tertiary morphological characteristics of flies collected from Nagpur region. The new COI subunit I (588 bp) gene sequence of Chrysomya megacephala have been added to GenBank (Accession No.-MN082633).
Chrysomya megacephala (Diptera: Calliphoridae) also known as oriental latrine fly is blow fly species widely distributed in many parts of the world. This fly has forensic importance as it infests on carrion soon after death and helps not only to estimate the post-mortem interval (PMI) but also to detect poisoning in a putrefying body. The present study was carried out on morphological identification of Chrysomya megacephala using key Lutz, 2018 and Cytochrome C Oxidase (COI). The special attention was focused on the tertiary morphological characteristics of flies collected from Nagpur region. The new COI subunit I (588 bp) gene sequence of Chrysomya megacephala have been added to GenBank (Accession No.-MN082633).
Se presentan resultados de la sucesión ecológica de insectos asociados a cadaveres de Cerdos (Sus scrofa) en Saltillo, Coahuila así como el desarrollo de Phormia regina bajo condiciones de laboratorio y su validación en campo.
To date, no research has been conducted on postmortem change and rate of soft tissue decomposition in semi-arid climates with high elevations such as those in Missoula, Montana combined with the effects of Black-billed Magpie scavenging. Variables in Montana, that have not been fully researched, include the wide variations between minimum and maximum temperatures and relative humidity, entomological activity, mummification, and facultative avian scavenging. The purpose of this research study was to empirically study the temporal order of events of postmortem changes in Missoula, Montana utilizing pig (Sus scrofa) cadavers as human proxies by documenting postmortem changes and rate of soft tissue decomposition of three pigs over the course of one year and 19 days, commencing on August 1, 2011 and concluding on August 20, 2012. The data from this study will be used to develop a pattern for the decomposition processes that take place in Missoula, Montana, which can be compared and contrasted to studies that may take place elsewhere. A full understanding of the postmortem changes and rate of soft tissue decomposition in this area will help forensic anthropologists better understand why the postmortem interval (PMI) may be different in Missoula, Montana than in other states or countries. The current research study will reveal that previous methods for estimating the PMI using ADD and TBS are not appropriate for Montana, as the climates are too disparate. Building a body of longitudinal data that documents environmentally related soft tissue decomposition or change will be a first step towards developing a decomposition sequence and time scheme that can be used to more accurately estimate the PMI. In Missoula, Montana a number of partially decomposed cases enter the medico-legal system each year. Thus, greater knowledge about the postmortem period will be a significant contribution to members of the medico-legal community as well as the criminal justice system. In addition, this data could be extended to similar climatic zones in Montana.
Key Words [Decomposition process, avian scavenging, mummification, TBS, ADD, PMI estimations]
Abstract
Recent archaeoentomological investigations of a funeral platform at the Mochica site of Huaca de la Luna, Peru, have highlighted the importance of necrophagous insects in the funeral rites of these Indians. A rich iconography showing flies flying over dancing skeletons or accompanying future sacrificed individuals corroborates the existence of singular mortuary practices, and suggests that probably these insects had a psychopomp function. The originality of this emblematic site of pre-Columbian America does not end there, as other insects, associated with funerary deposits, provide us relevant information about the nature of the offerings designed to accompany the deceased in his journey to the beyond.
Résumé
De récentes investigations archéoentomologiques conduites sur une plateforme funéraire du site de la Huaca de la Luna, au Pérou, ont permis de souligner l’importance des insectes nécrophages dans les rites funéraires des Mochicas. La riche iconographie montrant des mouches qui survolent des squelettes dansant ou accompagnant de futurs sacrifiés vient corroborer l’existence de pratiques mortuaires singulières et suggère que ces insectes avaient vraisemblablement une fonction psychopompe. L’originalité de ce site emblématique de l’Amérique précolombienne ne s’arrête pas là puisque d’autres insectes, associés aux dépôts funéraires, nous documentent sur la nature des offrandes destinées à accompagner les défunts dans l’Au-delà.
Specimens of liver were collected from 40 cases in which the cause of death had been determined to be opiate intoxication. Rearings of Calliphora vicina larvae were then promoted on the decomposing liver. A control group of 10 decomposed liver specimens from non-opiate deaths was treated similarly. Analysis of larvae and liver for opiates (morphine) was conducted by radioimmunoassay. Good qualitative and quantitative correlation was observed in both the positive and negative groups. Regression analysis comparing the concentrations of opiates found in the larvae with those found in the liver in the positive group resulted in a correlation of r = 0.790.