Abstract
A number of abiotic and biotic factors are known to regulate arthropod attraction, colonization, and utilization of decomposing vertebrate remains. Such information is critical when assessing arthropod evidence associated with said remains in terms of forensic relevance. Interactions are not limited to just between the resource and arthropods. There is another biotic factor that has been historically overlooked; however, with the advent of high-throughput sequencing, and other molecular techniques, the curtain has been pulled back to reveal a microscopic world that is playing a major role with regards to carrion decomposition patterns in association with arthropods. The objective of this publication is to review many of these factors and draw attention to their impact on microbial, specifically bacteria, activity associated with these remains as it is our contention that microbes serve as a primary mechanism regulating associated arthropod behavior.
Highlights
Forensic entomology is the well-established field of applying insect science to aid legal investigations where arthropods are associated with living [1,2], or deceased, people [3,4], pets [5], wildlife [6], or even livestock [7]
This activity has been called into question [10,11] with entomologists instead determining the age of insects collected from victims, in order to estimate a time of colonization, which could differ from the actual time of death
The purpose of this paper is to present a different perspective of the decomposition process and provide some basic understanding of some, but certainly not all, factors impacting microbial activity which, in turn, likely impacts arthropod behavior (Figure 1)
Summary
Forensic entomology is the well-established field of applying insect science to aid legal investigations where arthropods are associated with living [1,2], or deceased, people [3,4], pets [5], wildlife [6], or even livestock [7]. This activity has been called into question [10,11] with entomologists instead determining the age of insects collected from victims, in order to estimate a time of colonization, which could differ from the actual time of death (e.g., before death due to myiasis or after death resulting in a minimum PMI) Regardless, both analyses are built upon a foundation of assumptions regarding insect activity that might not always be completely accurate, and could, impact the validity of downstream information and inferences. Animals that compete for these resources are under intense pressure to quickly locate and consume them to avoid starvation, competition [29], or failure to locate a mate [30,31]
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