Forensic Entomology

Question 1

Why are insects important in legal investigations?

Answer 1

They’re everywhere, massive diversity, habitats, food source, size, life-cycles

Question 2

What are some Flies and their Different Behaviours?

Answer 2

• Bluebottle: big, looks like house fly, cooler environment
• Greenbottle: sunny environment, open field and inside
• Flesh Fly: largest one, don’t lay eggs (done inside female fly), not primary
• Cheese Skipper: small, comes later on in decomp, crawl away, make a circle then hop
• Coffin Fly: found in coffins, prefer buried bodies, tiny, if they can’t make it to the body to lay eggs, they will lay eggs in the soil and then larvae makes its way down to the body.

Question 3

How do blowflies find bodies?

Answer 3

They will detect the decomposing body, as the body releases chemicals, the blowflies will smell in with their antenna

Question 4

True or False: Beetles are rarely used to calculate PMI

Answer 4

True sluts :p

Question 5

What are the 3 physical traits that can be observed during decomposition?

Answer 5

• Fresh: just killed and looks normal (insects know immediately)
• Bloated, Active Decay: when larvae are making damage to the body (2 days after death)
• Advances Decay: a loss of tissue, (maggots starting to leave and ready to pupa)
• Dry/Skeletal

Question 6

How can insects be used in criminal investigations?

Answer 6

• Determination of time since death or PMI (Post-Mortem Interval)
• Identification of Victim
• Make or Break Alibis

Question 7

What are the 2 methods for determining PMI?

Answer 7

1) oldest insects, temperature, species, how long does it take that species to get to that stage at that temperature,
e. g. 7 days, so victim dead at least 7 days, could be more could be less
2) Rapid-changing ecosystem, Body goes through rabid biological, chemical and physical changes, Attractive to a predictable sequence of insects, Varies with habitat, season, geographic area etc.

Question 8

What are the 7 applications of entomology?

Answer 8

> Manner of death

- Suicide or murder: should larvae be here, maggots In palm of hands, rarely see that because little flesh, must be trauma and blood

> Disposal of body

- Location will affect decomposition and insect colonisation

> Damage to body/ clothing

- Larvae may move clothing to appear like a sexual assault took place (push shirts up and down, maggot masses)
- Feed on tissues around a wound, destroying evidence

> Neglect (civil)

- Living host: vulnerable person, at times no neglect but irritation to skin
- Case example: larvae on obese women with diabetes

> Movement of body

- From rural to urban
- Ex: 3rd instar larvae, can conduct test how long larvae can live under water

> Post mortem interval

- Early: insect development
- Later: insect succession
- For both of these you need to understand insect life cycle, insect behaviour, and decomposition

> Extracting human DNA, presence of drugs in a body, movement of the body after death

Question 9

How can Larval Tissue be used in an investigation?

Answer 9

> Extracting human DNA

> Presence of drugs in a body, can take out stomach of larvae and look at

> Larvae will ingest what ever person had in their body

> Look for derivative of drug, looking for metabolised drug, not actual drug

Question 10

What should Entomologists be familiar with?

Answer 10

> Identification

> Different life cycles

> Behaviour and habitat

> Effects of temperature and the environment

> Collection methods

> Storage and transport