Description of Immature Stages and Development Time of Paralucilia paraensis (Mello) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) Associated with the Decomposition of a Partially Submerged Swine Carcass

Abstract

We report on the bionomics and morphology of the immature stages of Paralucilia paraensis (Mello) (Diptera: Calliphoridae). Observations were made on a daily basis for 10 h (from 8 a.m. to 6 p.m.) on a 45-kg pig (Sus scrofa) whose carcass had been partially submerged in a stream of water on the 21st of November 2009, in a forested area of Manaus, Amazonas, Brazil. The collected specimens were placed in plastic vials and transferred to a growth chamber maintained at room temperature. Adults of P. paraensis were collected on the carcass between the 3rd and the 18th days. A total of 13 gravid females were captured; from these, 1,240 eggs were obtained and yielded 1,030 larvae that developed into 879 adults. The average time required for hatching was 13 h. On average, the larvae reached the second instar within 13 h, third instar within 18 h, and pupae within 46 h. The pupal stage lasted 96 h. The complete development time was 216 h. This is the first report on the development time and morphology of immature stages of P. paraensis in forested areas. Therefore, these results provided information for the implementation of future forensic studies in the state of Amazonas.

Seasonal distribution of Calliphoridae and Mesenbrinellidae (Diptera) associated with the decomposition of a clothed animal model in a forest reserve in the Central Amazon

“…Barros et al (2018Barros et al ( , 2019 performed morphological and bionomic studies of the dipteran Hermetia illucens (L., 1758) (Stratiomyidae), providing important biological data to minimize errors in the calculation of PMI involving this species. Sales et al (2013) provided morphological and bionomic studies of Paralucilia paraensis (Mello, 1969) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) allowing for a more accurate estimation of PMI min in the region.…”