Formicidae (Hymenoptera) community in corpses at different altitudes in a semiarid wild environment in the southeast of the Iberian Peninsula

Abstract

The Formicidae are considered crucial components of the entomosarcosaprophagous fauna because they can delay the decomposition process, cause tissue postmortem damage and produce bloodstain patterns that may confuse investigations. Moreover, some studies suggest that the Formicidae can act as environmental and seasonal indicators. However, studies on this group on vertebrate carcasses are scarce, especially in the Iberian Peninsula and the southwest of Europe. Thus, comparative studies at different altitudes in a protected wild mountain area could provide useful information on its composition in such environmental conditions, their role as environmental indicators and their forensic implications. For this reason, the Formicidae sarcosaprophagous community was studied at three different altitudes, between 400 and 1,500 m, in a wild mountainous area in the southeast of Spain using a modified Schoenly trap, with two pitfall traps inside, baited with 5 kg piglets (Sus scrofa L.). This work illustrates an approach to the community of the Formicidae, as a representative of the sarcosaprophagous community in an altitudinal gradient, showing a great variability in its composition. Furthermore, when comparing our results with other studies carried out in the Iberian Peninsula, we are able to suggest certain species with a potential utility as geographic and environmental indicators. Thus, Iberoformica subrufa, Lasius brunneus, Lasius cinereus and Camponotus sylvaticus are species of special interest as they appeared in either one of the sampled areas or in the same region.

Entomological Contributions to the Legal System in Southeastern Spain

“…With regard to the carrion arthropod succession, much is known on the importance of the geographical region or biogeoclimatic zone, and even the particular habitat concerning a concrete case, on insect colonization of such carrion (i.e., [ 6 , 7 , 8 , 9 ]). It has been proposed that different environments or habitats can influence the patterns of community assemblage [ 10 , 11 ], illustrating the importance of performing studies on carrion entomofauna in a variety of habitats and scenarios in all regions in which Forensic Entomology is used [ 6 ].…”

“…In the Iberian Peninsula, there are reports of the contributions to the knowledge of the structure and dynamics of the entomosarcosaprophagous fauna in several areas (i.e., [ 7 , 9 , 11 , 12 , 13 , 14 , 15 , 16 , 17 , 18 , 19 , 20 , 21 , 22 , 23 , 24 , 25 , 26 ]), and, in at least one case [ 14 ], a relationship between experimental study and forensic cases’ resolution has been established. Moreover, studies on certain groups of insects have addressed the morphology of immature stages [ 27 , 28 , 29 , 30 ] and the development of certain species under controlled conditions (i.e., [ 31 , 32 ] among others).…”

Ampliación de la distribución conocida de coleópteros, dípteros e himenópteros sarcosaprófagos (Arthropoda: Insecta) con potencial interés forense en la península ibérica

“…La familia Formicidae estuvo compuesta por 18 especies previamente conocidas por presentar hábitos sarcosaprófagos en la península ibérica (Pérez-Marcos et al, 2020), con excepción de H. eduardi. Esta especie fue encontrada en el interior de restos en descomposición de cangrejo americano en un entorno lagunar.…”

“…Esta especie fue encontrada en el interior de restos en descomposición de cangrejo americano en un entorno lagunar. A pesar de que algunas especies del género Hypoponera Santschi, 1938 son conocidas por presentar hábitos sarcosaprófagos (Early & Goff, 1986;Watson & Carlton, 2005), en España solo se habían documentado en la especie Hypoponera punctatissima (Roger, 1859) (Begoña-Gaminde, 2015;Pérez-Marcos et al, 2020). Por lo tanto, los resultados obtenidos permiten ampliar la ecología de H. eduardi y relacionarla por primera vez en asociación con restos en descomposición.…”

“…los himenópteros también recibe un papel importante en las comunidades sarcosaprófagas al estar compuesto por formas necrófilas o parásitas que pueden influir en la sucesión ecológica, ralentizando la colonización de dípteros o dismuyendo su abundancia (Oliva, 2008;Anderson, 2010). Entre las familias mejor representadas en los restos en descomposición destacan Formicidae, Pteromalidae, Chalcididae, Braconidae, Vespidae o Diapriidae, entre muchas otras (Begoña-Gaminde, 2015;López-Gallego, 2016;Pérez-Marcos et al, 2020).…”