Entomologist Studies Blow Flies and Crime Scenes
Aside from the typical clues at crime scenes such as fingerprints and DNA, Rutgers University graduate student, Lauren Weidner, is an entomologist who studies blow flies and their value to clues in a crime scene. Blow flies, which are attracted to a dead body within minutes after death, can help provide information involving the time of death and sometimes where the person died. Weidner stated that she must work backwards to determine when the eggs were laid and then uses that information to assist investigators. The life cycle and the larvae are much more predictable timeframes to work off of than the vastly different rates of body decomposition. Weidner’s research focuses on studying the differences in blow fly life cycles along with the impact of temperature on the life cycle.
Source: Forensic Magazine
Read the full article here.
Citation: (2013). Forensic Magazine. Entomologist studies blow flies and crime scenes. Retrieved April 30, 2013, from http://www.forensicmag.com/news/entomologist-studies-blow-flies-and-crime-scenes
[Abstract by ForensIQ intern, Andrea Williams]
