Foraging by food deprived larvae of Neobellieria bullata (Diptera: Sarcophagidae)
Christopherson, C.; Gibo, D.L.
Journal of Forensic Sciences 42(1): 71-73
1997
ISSN/ISBN: 0022-1198 PMID: 8988575 Document Number: 470033
Traditional entomological methods of estimating postmortem interval from developmental stages of fly larvae associated with the body are based on the premise that older larvae are not recruited from the surrounding environment. The authors found that food-deprived 2nd- and 3rd-instar larvae of N. bullata [Sarcophaga bullata] can locate beef liver over a distance of 33 cm, apparently by using chemical cues, and can crawl to the food within 90 min. The implications of these results are discussed with respect to methods of estimating postmortem interval by calculating rates of fly larvae development.