Cleveland Museum of Natural History Invertebrate Zoology Research Forensic Entomology Home Event Calendar window["ctl00_ctl00_SiteNavTreeImageData"] = ['/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/BottomLine.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/BottomMinus.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/BottomPlus.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/MiddleCrossLine.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/MiddleLine.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/MiddleMinus.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/MiddlePlus.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/SingleMinus.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/SinglePlus.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/TopLine.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/TopMinus.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/TopPlus.gif','/site/RadControls/TreeView/Skins/CMNH/WhiteSpace.gif']; About Us Overview History History Timeline ... BoardMax for Trustees Forensic Entomology Photo atlas Blow fly life cycle Insect collecting Introduction Forensic entomology is the study of insects for their use in legal investigations. One of the most popular applications is in medico-criminal investigations of death by mysterious or suspicious causes. A dead body attracts a wide variety of insects which use the corpse for food and as a place to lay their eggs. By carefully examining the species, community composition, and age of these insects, an investigator with a knowledge of forensic entomology can learn many important clues. How long the person has been dead (also known as the post-mortem interval or PMI), whether the body has been moved after death, and what injuries they may have sustained are some of the things which forensic entomology can determine. | |
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