Forensic Entomology or How to Use Informative Cadaver Inhabitant

When a corpse is discovered, investigators have to identify the victim to determine the cause of the death and to estimate the post mortem interval. If the corpse is in an advanced decay, estimating the post mortem interval using common techniques becomes rather difficult. In this regard, insects picked up by the cadaver can be of great help. Forensic entomology studies the successive arrivals of insects on a cadaver. One after the other, eight screwworms, first attracted and then repulsed by release of new odours, colonise corpses from death to skeletal reduction. All insects collected on the crime scene are identified and their biology used to estimate the post mortem interval. With an accuracy of one day per month of age of the cadaver, this technique has been shown to be really useful for investigators, therefore becoming more popular.