Insect diversity and succession pattern on different carrion types
Keywords:
Insect diversity, succession pattern, carrion, decomposition, forensic entomology, Ghana
Abstract
Insect fauna attracted on four different types of carrion; beef, chicken, pork, and fish were conducted in a cassava growing field on the campus of the University of Ghana for a period of twenty-eight days between February and March, 2005. Four stages of decomposition were recognized; fresh, bloated, decay and dry. A total of 19 insect species belonging to five orders and thirteen families were recorded. Coleoptera represented 23% of the total number of species. Diptera and Hymenoptera constituted 35% and 41% respectively while Collembola and Heteroptera a mere 1% of the insect orders that dominated the carrion fauna. Caliphoridae were the first to arrive on all four types of carrion. Five species of Histeridae, three of Formicidae and one each from Dermestidae, Scarabaeidae, Cleridae, Mycetophagidae, Scolytidae were recorded on beef, chicken, pork and fish. Representatives of four Dipteran families; Calliphoridae, Muscidae, Sarcophagidae and Tachinidae were also recorded. One species each of the families Pyrrhocoridae and Isotomidae were unique to pork and chicken respectively.
References
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Goff ML and Flynn MM. 1991. Determination of postmortem interval by arthropod succession: a case study from the Hawaiian Islands. Journal Forensic Science 36:607-614.
Grassberger M and Frank C. 2004. Initial study of arthropod succession on pig carrion in a central European urban habitat. Journal of Medical Entomology 41:511-523.
Greenberg B and Kunich JC. 2002. Entomology and the law: flies as forensic indicators. Cambridge Univ Press.
Gullan PJ and Cranston P. 2010. The Insects: An Outline of Entomology. 4th Edition. Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford. 565.
Hall JB and Swaine MD. 1981. Distribution and ecology of vascular plants in a tropical rain forest: Forest vegetation in Ghana. . Dr W. Junk, The Hague.
Nuorteva P. 1970. Histerid beetles as predators of blowflies (Diptera Calliphoridae) in Finland. 195-198.
Payne JA. 1965. A summer carrion study of the baby pig Sus scrofa Linnaeus. Ecology 46, 592-602.
Peters SL. 2003. Temperature Variations of Dipteran Larval Masses Analyzed on Florida Black Bear Carcasses. University of Florida, 107.
Reed H. 1958. A study of dog carcass communities in Tennessee, with special reference to the insects. American Midland Naturalist 59:213-245.
Rodriguez WC and Bass W. 1983. Insect activity and its relationship to decay rates of human cadavers in East Tennessee. J Forensic Sci., 28:423-432.
Schoenly K and Reid W. 1987. Dynamics of heterotrophic succession in carrion arthropod assemblages: Discrete seres or a continuum of change. Oecologia 73:192-202.
Smith KGV. 1986. A manual of forensic entomology. Cornell University Press, New York.
Snodgrass RE. 1967. Insects, their ways and means of living. Dover Publications, New York.
Tantawi TI, El-Kady EM, Greenberg B, El-Ghaffar HA. 1996. Arthropod succession on exposed rabbit carrion in Alexandria, Egypt. Journal of Medical Entomology 33:566-580.
Wasti’s S. 1972. A study of the carrion of the common fowl, Gallus domesticus, in relation to arthropod succession. J Georgia Entomol Soc., 7:221-229.
Anderson GS and Van Laerhoven SL. 1996. Initial studies on insect succession carrion in South Western British Columbia. Journal Forensic Science 41:617-625.
Arnaldos I, Romera E, García MD, Luna A. 2001. An initial study on the succession of sarcosaprophagous Diptera (Insecta) on carrion in the southeastern Iberian peninsula. International Journal of Legal Medicine 114:156-162.
Bornemissza G. 1957. An analysis of Arthropod succession in Carrion and the effect of its decomposiion on the soil fauna. Australian Journal of Zoology 5:1-12.
Braack LEO. 1987. Community dynamics of carrion attendants arthropods tropical African Woodland. Oecologia 72:402-409.
Carter DO, Yellowlees D, Tibbett M. 2007. Cadaver Decomposition in Terrestrial Ecosystems. Naturwissenschaften 94:12-24.
Carvalho LML and Linhares AX. 2001. Seasonality of insect succession and pig carcass decomposition in a natural forest area in southeastern Brazil. Journal of forensic sciences 46:604.
Catts EP and Haskell NH. 1990. Entomology and Death: a Procedural Guide. Joyce’s Print Shop, Clemson, SC.
Coe M. 1978. The decomposition of elephant carcasses in the Tsavo (East) National Park, Kenya. Journal of Arid Environments 1:71-86.
Erzinclioglu YZ. 1983. The application of entomology to forensic medicine. Medical Science and the Law 23:57-63.
Galal LAA, Abd-El-hameed SY, Attia RAH, Uonis DA. 2009. An initial study on arthropod succession on exposed human tissues in Assiut, Egypt. Mansoura Journal of Forensic Medicine and Clinical Toxicology 17:55-74.
Gill-King H. 1997. Chemical and ultrastructural aspects of decomposition. In: Haglund, W.D., Sorg, M.H. (Eds.), Forensic Taphonomy: The Postmortem Fate of Human Remains. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL. USA, 93-108.
Goddard J and Lago P. 1985. Notes on blow fly(Diptera: Calliphoridae) succession on carrion in northern Mississippi. Journal of Entomological Science 20:312-317.
Goff ML and Flynn MM. 1991. Determination of postmortem interval by arthropod succession: a case study from the Hawaiian Islands. Journal Forensic Science 36:607-614.
Grassberger M and Frank C. 2004. Initial study of arthropod succession on pig carrion in a central European urban habitat. Journal of Medical Entomology 41:511-523.
Greenberg B and Kunich JC. 2002. Entomology and the law: flies as forensic indicators. Cambridge Univ Press.
Gullan PJ and Cranston P. 2010. The Insects: An Outline of Entomology. 4th Edition. Wiley-Blackwell, Oxford. 565.
Hall JB and Swaine MD. 1981. Distribution and ecology of vascular plants in a tropical rain forest: Forest vegetation in Ghana. . Dr W. Junk, The Hague.
Nuorteva P. 1970. Histerid beetles as predators of blowflies (Diptera Calliphoridae) in Finland. 195-198.
Payne JA. 1965. A summer carrion study of the baby pig Sus scrofa Linnaeus. Ecology 46, 592-602.
Peters SL. 2003. Temperature Variations of Dipteran Larval Masses Analyzed on Florida Black Bear Carcasses. University of Florida, 107.
Reed H. 1958. A study of dog carcass communities in Tennessee, with special reference to the insects. American Midland Naturalist 59:213-245.
Rodriguez WC and Bass W. 1983. Insect activity and its relationship to decay rates of human cadavers in East Tennessee. J Forensic Sci., 28:423-432.
Schoenly K and Reid W. 1987. Dynamics of heterotrophic succession in carrion arthropod assemblages: Discrete seres or a continuum of change. Oecologia 73:192-202.
Smith KGV. 1986. A manual of forensic entomology. Cornell University Press, New York.
Snodgrass RE. 1967. Insects, their ways and means of living. Dover Publications, New York.
Tantawi TI, El-Kady EM, Greenberg B, El-Ghaffar HA. 1996. Arthropod succession on exposed rabbit carrion in Alexandria, Egypt. Journal of Medical Entomology 33:566-580.
Wasti’s S. 1972. A study of the carrion of the common fowl, Gallus domesticus, in relation to arthropod succession. J Georgia Entomol Soc., 7:221-229.
Published
2012-11-02
How to Cite
Kyerematen, R. A., Boateng, B. A., & Twumasi, E. (2012). Insect diversity and succession pattern on different carrion types. Journal of Research in Biology, 2(7), 683-690. Retrieved from https://ojs.jresearchbiology.com/ojs1/index.php/jrb/article/view/267
Section
Articles
