Key words: Calliphoridae -carrion insects -decomposition -forensic entomology -pupariaThe family Calliphoridae consists of carrion flies which may also feed on living tissues. These species are potentially dangerous to man and other animals since the larvae may cause myiasis and adults may transmit pathogens. The diseases transmitted by these flies cause substantial losses to the cattle industry (Norris 1959, Zumpt 1965, Greenberg 1971, 1973, Richard & Gerrish 1983. The genus Chrysomya was introduced in Brazil from Africa (Zumpt 1965) with the first records being from the states of Paraná (Imbiriba et al. 1977) and São Paulo (Guimarães et al. 1978). Chrysomya species are currently found from the southern United States to southern Brazil (Jiron 1979, Gagné 1981, Baumgartner & Greenberg 1984.Insects are important in carcass decomposition, and calliphorids, which are among the most abundant and best studied carrion insects have been extensively used as indicators of the post mortem interval (death time) and of corpses translocation. These flies are therefore a valuable tool for forensic medicine (Megnin 1894, Smith 1986, Catts & Haskell 1990.In this study, we show that it is possible to distinguish among three species (C. megacephala, C. putoria and Cochliomyia macellaria) based on characteristics of their pupae and puparia. MATERIALS AND METHODSCultures (F1) of each species were maintained in cages (25 cmx25 cmx30 cm) covered with mosquito nets, at 25 ± 1 o C, 60% relative humidity and a 12 h photoperiod. The flies were fed raw bovine liver for four days immediately after emergence and with water and sugar ad libitum thereafter. Eggs of the three species were collected from these cultures using ground raw bovine meat. Before hatching, the eggs were transferred from the meat to vials containing artificial culture medium (Leal et al. 1982) growth. The vials were kept under the same conditions of the F1 cultures. When the larvae reached the third instar, they were transferred to vials filled with sawdust for pupating.After the F2 adults of each species had emerged, specimens of their puparia (without any cleaning) were examined with a binocular microscope to assess interspecific differences in the posterior spiracle region. In 30 puparia from each species, the distance between the two peritrema was measured. These distances were compared by analysis of variance followed by the Student-Newman-Keuls test (Zar 1996), with the critical value set at p = 0.05. RESULTSC. putoria puparia had six very conspicuous tubercles in the perispiracular region whereas in
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.
hi@scite.ai
10624 S. Eastern Ave., Ste. A-614
Henderson, NV 89052, USA
Copyright © 2024 scite LLC. All rights reserved.
Made with 💙 for researchers
Part of the Research Solutions Family.