Sorry again I was gone today (was registering for classes), but I was still able to do some research and post a blog.
Pigs will decompose in a very similar manner to humans, so they are used as test subjects by forensic entomologists, such as M. Lee Goff of Chaminade University in Hawaii.
It's also quite common for entomologists to take samples from a decaying corpse. If the samples include eggs or larvae, the young insects could be "raised" to adulthood in a lab. Additionally, insects can provide more than an estimation of a PMI; they could also tell if the body was moved and where the murder took place. And in some rare instances, insects have brought forth more momentous evidence. For example, a crushed grasshopper with a missing leg was found at a murder scene and his leg was found inside the pant cuff of the perpetrator! Another example includes insect bites found on the suspect that were also on the victim.
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2 comments:
I do not know...I think some of your examples could be considered circumsantial at best. Good findings and certainly interesting. I think photos from the Upward Bound project may assist you in your presentation of insects evidence.
How does temperature affect decompostion and the life cycle of micro-organisms?
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