The blowfly Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae) as a new forensic indicator in Central Europe

Abstract

During the summer months of the year 2001, six forensic cases (one is reported in the present paper), a pig carrion study in the city of Vienna (latitude 48°12'N, longitude 16°22'E) and several liver-baited traps north of Vienna, yielded large numbers of maggots of the blowfly Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae). Apart from some records from France, reports of C. albiceps from the palearctic region north of the Alps (i.e. north of a latitude of 48°N) have been scarce. Our findings provided an opportunity to derive developmental schedules for C. albiceps at five different constant temperatures (15, 20, 25, 30, 35°C). The minimal duration of development from oviposition to adult was inversely related to temperature, ranging from 8.3 ± 0.5 days at 35°C to 19.2 ± 0.92 days at 20°C. Although eggs hatched after 1.9 ± 0.16 days at 15°C, larvae did not complete development and frequently died during the first instar stage. We also found a high mortality rate (up to 99%) of native L. sericata larvae caused by predation of C. albiceps larvae under laboratory conditions, indicating a high susceptibility of L. sericata to attack by C. albiceps. Apart from this, the current and possible future distribution of C. albiceps in Europe is discussed. The northward expansion of its range beyond southern Europe obviously decreases the value of C. albiceps in estimating the site of death, in that it is no longer exclusive to southern European regions. Moreover, the aggressive feeding behaviour of second and third instar larve of C. albiceps could reset the post-mortem insect clock by clearing a corpse of all earlier arrivers.

Dipterans Associated with a Decomposing Animal Carcass in a Rainforest Fragment in Brazil: Notes on the Early Arrival and Colonization by Necrophagous Species

“…While the forensic relevance has been corroborated for some of the early species registered here, namely Chrysomya species (Grassberger et al 2003), M. scalaris (Greenberg and Wells 1998), P. casei (Benecke 1998), and Fannia species (Benecke and Lessig 2001), species from the genus Oxysarcodexia are comparatively less studied. The genus is characteristic of the Neotropical region, and the greatest number of species is found in Brazil, where they develop preferentially in feces (Lopes 1946).…”

“…Information on abiotic factors combined with the time interval taken by the larvae to reach each developmental stage can provide reliable estimates of the time elapsed between cadaver colonization by insects and the discovery of the body (Catts and Goff 1992; Benecke 1998; Grassberger et al 2003; Tomberlin et al 2011). …”

Effects of storage temperature on the change in size of Calliphora vicina larvae during preservation in 80% ethanol

“…No study has looked at the effects of killing methods and preservation on the change in larval weight, as an alternative measure of size. Several studies have derived developmental data based on larval length and/or weight [3, 5, 8, 11, 13, 16], but some argue that weight is not as good as measure as length [10, 15, 19]. Although this may be true for larvae that have not been preserved, it is well known that the length of third instar larvae is significantly affected during preservation, even after 3 h [1].…”

Utility of Multi-Gene Loci for Forensic Species Diagnosis of Blowflies

“…The growth periods, developmental rates (van Laerhoven 2008), and diapause responses (Ash and Greenberg 1975) are all substantially different for closely related species. These peculiar features make blowflies the primary and most accurate indicators of the post mortem interval (Grassberger et al 2003). However, the immature stages pose a great identification challenge for forensic entomologists due to their lack of species-specific anatomical characters (McDonagh et al 2009).…”