Document Type : Original Research Papers
Authors
1
Entomology Department, Faculty of Science, Benha University, Benha, 13518, Egypt
2
Botany and Microbiology Department, Faculty of Science, Benha,13518, Egypt.
Abstract
Blowflies and other insects can be used in forensic entomology to provide information for criminal investigations, providing tools to solve criminal cases. Blowflies’ preference for corpses, important insect evidence in forensic investigations, was studied by distributing a number of different food substrates in urban and rural areas. The diversity and abundance of blowflies in summer and winter seasons were also studied. A total of 11,508 adults and larvae belonging to sixteen species from 10 families were collected. More insects were collected in rural areas than urban ones. Chrysomya albiceps, Sarcophaga carnaria, and Lucilia sericata made up 16.8%, 14.0%, and 12.5% of all the insects collected, respectively. The majority of adults were attracted to rabbit meat baits, followed by beef steaks and mouse carcasses. Chrysomya albiceps, C. vicina, C. megacephala, and L. sericata flies preferred rabbit meat, while S. carnaria and Wohlfahrtia magnifica flies preferred mouse carcasses. All flies profited from the rural environments except S. carnaria (52.80%) and Drosophila melanogaster flies (54.79%). The relative abundance, diversity, and seasonality of Chrysomya, Lucilia, Sarcophaga, Wohlfahrtia, Muscina, Musca, Drosophila, and Fannia genera increased during the summer months, with a total number of 1595, 897, 805, 1173, 1310, 873, 292, 1043, 151, and 531, respectively. The abundance of insects on the rabbit meat baits may simulate conditions similar to human corpses. The present results may be of enormous help for legal investigations in the region and its surroundings.
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