Page 69 - Veritas - 02.03.22

Here comes the role of forensic entomologists; they collect the sam-

ples from the corpse including fresh and latest representatives of

each and every species. It’s because the development of arthropods

is linked directly to the temperature that they also gather daily tem-

perature data from the nearest available weather station.

In the lab, the scientists try to identify each insect to their species

and determine their exact developmental stage.

If it is not possible, they raise some of the maggots to adulthood to

confirm their species. Blowflies and flesh flies are the most useful

insect species for determining the Post-Mortem Interval (PMI) or

time of death.

Through lab studies, scientists have determined the developmental

rates of necrophagous species based on the constant temperature in

the lab environment. These databases provide entomologists with

a measurement called Accumulated Degree Day (ADD). ADD rep-

resents physiological time.

Using the known ADD, it is easy to calculate the age of the specimen

from the corpse. Working backwards through physiological time, a

forensic entomologist can provide investigators with a specific time

period when the body was first colonized by these insects.

Since these insects find the corpse within a minute or half an hour,

they reveal the almost exact time of death or PMI.

REFERENCE:

• Hadley, D. (2018, January 4). How Crime Scene Insects Reveal the

Time of Death of a Corpse. ThoughtCo. Retrieved from https://www.

thoughtco.com/crime-scene-insects-reveal-time-of-death-1968319