Intermediate disturbance promotes diversity and the conservation of dung beetles (Scarabaeoidea: Scarabaeidae and Aphodiidae) in the Eastern Cape, South Africa
- Tocco, Claudia, Midgley, John M, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Tocco, Claudia , Midgley, John M , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/442195 , vital:73966 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.baae.2020.10.005
- Description: Environmental fluctuations, such as changes in climate, agricultural management and anthropogenic land-use patterns can affect the diversity of organisms inhabiting an area. Losses of biodiversity alter ecosystems processes, eroding their capacity to deliver ecosystem services. Dung beetles are critical ecosystem service providers, making them an ideal ecological indicator to explore the effects of land-use change on biodiversity. Dung beetles were sampled across three land-use types, in the summers of 2015 and 2016 in the Eastern Cape province, South Africa. Game ranching is regarded as a relatively low-intensity land use type. It was compared with cattle ranching (medium intensity) and dairy farming (high intensity) to examine their effect on dung beetle assemblage metrics (abundance, species richness and true Shannon diversity index), guild diversity (as nesting guilds) and spatial turnover. The intermediate grazing intensity of cattle ranching supported a higher abundance and diversity of both whole dung beetle assemblage and the nesting guilds, followed by the game ranches and then dairy farms. Differences between the sampling years were dependent on the beetle nesting guild, and largely correlated with rainfall and temperature. Cattle and game ranches shared a higher number of species than either shared with dairy farms. Whittaker's Beta-diversity index showed the highest species turnover between game ranches and dairy farms. A mix of game and cattle ranching, minimising dairy farming or restricting it to already ecological degraded sites, appears the best alternative for maintenance of dung beetle diversity and their ecosystem services. The year-to-year trends of the data were in general consistent, confirming that dung beetles are reliable ecological indicators; but also suggest that climate change that affects rainfall will result in the reduction of the abundance and diversity of this key ecological group.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
- Authors: Tocco, Claudia , Midgley, John M , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2020
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/442195 , vital:73966 , https://doi.org/10.1016/j.baae.2020.10.005
- Description: Environmental fluctuations, such as changes in climate, agricultural management and anthropogenic land-use patterns can affect the diversity of organisms inhabiting an area. Losses of biodiversity alter ecosystems processes, eroding their capacity to deliver ecosystem services. Dung beetles are critical ecosystem service providers, making them an ideal ecological indicator to explore the effects of land-use change on biodiversity. Dung beetles were sampled across three land-use types, in the summers of 2015 and 2016 in the Eastern Cape province, South Africa. Game ranching is regarded as a relatively low-intensity land use type. It was compared with cattle ranching (medium intensity) and dairy farming (high intensity) to examine their effect on dung beetle assemblage metrics (abundance, species richness and true Shannon diversity index), guild diversity (as nesting guilds) and spatial turnover. The intermediate grazing intensity of cattle ranching supported a higher abundance and diversity of both whole dung beetle assemblage and the nesting guilds, followed by the game ranches and then dairy farms. Differences between the sampling years were dependent on the beetle nesting guild, and largely correlated with rainfall and temperature. Cattle and game ranches shared a higher number of species than either shared with dairy farms. Whittaker's Beta-diversity index showed the highest species turnover between game ranches and dairy farms. A mix of game and cattle ranching, minimising dairy farming or restricting it to already ecological degraded sites, appears the best alternative for maintenance of dung beetle diversity and their ecosystem services. The year-to-year trends of the data were in general consistent, confirming that dung beetles are reliable ecological indicators; but also suggest that climate change that affects rainfall will result in the reduction of the abundance and diversity of this key ecological group.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2020
Advances in entomotoxicology: Weaknesses and strengths
- Campobasso, Carlo P, Bugelli, Valentina, Carfora, Anna, Borriello, Renata, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Campobasso, Carlo P , Bugelli, Valentina , Carfora, Anna , Borriello, Renata , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/442717 , vital:74027 , ISBN 9781351163767 , https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781351163767-13/advances-entomotoxicology-carlo-campobasso-valentina-bugelli-anna-carfora-renata-borriello-martin-villet
- Description: Forensic entomotoxicology deals mainly with the analysis of the tissues of insects to identify toxicants present in their food sources. Insects feeding on human tissues can ingest all of the xenobiotic substances taken by living individuals, such as common prescription and illicit drugs. Ecotoxicology is a well-established scientific discipline from which environmental forensic entomotoxicology is derived as a relatively new branch. Entomotoxicology also addresses the effects of drugs and toxins on arthropod development, survival, morphology, and their implications for estimating postmortem intervals. The primary focus of a forensic toxicologist is the detection of toxicants from human tissue samples to help in determining the cause of death. Like nutrients, toxicants encountered by an insect may be assimilated, digested, absorbed, and either sequestered, metabolized, or excreted. Entomological samples are currently of limited quantitative value in forensic toxicology.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Campobasso, Carlo P , Bugelli, Valentina , Carfora, Anna , Borriello, Renata , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , book chapter
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/442717 , vital:74027 , ISBN 9781351163767 , https://www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/edit/10.4324/9781351163767-13/advances-entomotoxicology-carlo-campobasso-valentina-bugelli-anna-carfora-renata-borriello-martin-villet
- Description: Forensic entomotoxicology deals mainly with the analysis of the tissues of insects to identify toxicants present in their food sources. Insects feeding on human tissues can ingest all of the xenobiotic substances taken by living individuals, such as common prescription and illicit drugs. Ecotoxicology is a well-established scientific discipline from which environmental forensic entomotoxicology is derived as a relatively new branch. Entomotoxicology also addresses the effects of drugs and toxins on arthropod development, survival, morphology, and their implications for estimating postmortem intervals. The primary focus of a forensic toxicologist is the detection of toxicants from human tissue samples to help in determining the cause of death. Like nutrients, toxicants encountered by an insect may be assimilated, digested, absorbed, and either sequestered, metabolized, or excreted. Entomological samples are currently of limited quantitative value in forensic toxicology.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Bloodmeal analysis in Culicoides midges collected near horses, donkeys and zebras in the Eastern Cape, South Africa:
- Riddin, Megan A, Venter, G J, Labuschagne, K, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Riddin, Megan A , Venter, G J , Labuschagne, K , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140692 , vital:37910 , DOI: 10.1111/mve.12381
- Description: An upsurge in African horse sickness (AHS) in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, from 2006 led to an epidemiological reassessment of the disease there. Light trapping surveys carried out near horses, donkeys and zebras in 2014–2016 collected 39 species of Culicoides midge (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) that are potential vectors of AHS. To establish if these midges fed on equids, DNA sequences were obtained from the gut contents of 52 female midges (35 freshly blood-fed, 13 gravid and four parous), representing 11 species collected across 11 sites. Culicoides leucostictus fed on all three equids. Culicoides bolitinos, Culicoides imicola and Culicoides magnus fed on both horses and donkeys. Culicoides onderstepoortensis fed on donkeys, and Culicoides similis and Culicoides pycnostictus fed on zebras. Bloodmeals from cows, pigs, warthogs, impalas and a domestic dog were also identified in various species, but none of the midges tested had fed on birds. These results contribute to knowledge of the vectorial capacity of several species of Culicoides with regard to AHS in the Eastern Cape and point to potential reservoir hosts, of which donkeys, zebras and domestic dogs have previously been found to harbour AHS. Blood-fed midges were also obtained throughout winter, indicating the potential for endemic AHS in the province.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Riddin, Megan A , Venter, G J , Labuschagne, K , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140692 , vital:37910 , DOI: 10.1111/mve.12381
- Description: An upsurge in African horse sickness (AHS) in the Eastern Cape, South Africa, from 2006 led to an epidemiological reassessment of the disease there. Light trapping surveys carried out near horses, donkeys and zebras in 2014–2016 collected 39 species of Culicoides midge (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae) that are potential vectors of AHS. To establish if these midges fed on equids, DNA sequences were obtained from the gut contents of 52 female midges (35 freshly blood-fed, 13 gravid and four parous), representing 11 species collected across 11 sites. Culicoides leucostictus fed on all three equids. Culicoides bolitinos, Culicoides imicola and Culicoides magnus fed on both horses and donkeys. Culicoides onderstepoortensis fed on donkeys, and Culicoides similis and Culicoides pycnostictus fed on zebras. Bloodmeals from cows, pigs, warthogs, impalas and a domestic dog were also identified in various species, but none of the midges tested had fed on birds. These results contribute to knowledge of the vectorial capacity of several species of Culicoides with regard to AHS in the Eastern Cape and point to potential reservoir hosts, of which donkeys, zebras and domestic dogs have previously been found to harbour AHS. Blood-fed midges were also obtained throughout winter, indicating the potential for endemic AHS in the province.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Checklist, endemism, English vernacular names and identification of the cicadas (Insecta, Hemiptera, Cicadidae) of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa:
- Armstrong, Adrian J, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Armstrong, Adrian J , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140586 , vital:37901 , DOI: 10.3897/afrinvertebr.60.35130
- Description: Public understanding of the goals of applied biology and conservation is promoted by showcasing charismatic or significant organisms using vernacular names. Conservation activities in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, are prioritising taxa that have high rates of provincial endemism, such as snails, earthworms, millipedes and cicadas. To assist wider public engagement in these activities, an assessment of endemism of the cicadas of KwaZulu-Natal is presented along with a dichotomous, 37-couplet key for the identification of males, based mainly on externally visible morphology and colouration. Standardised English vernacular names coined following a simple naming convention are proposed. Forty-two percent (16 out of 38) of the cicada species known from KwaZulu-Natal are endemic to the province. Photographs of some of the species are included to facilitate their identification. Photographs can be used for identification of various species providing that the diagnostic characters are visible in the photographs. For this purpose, photographs may have to be taken of hand-held individuals. Some of the endemic species are of particular concern for conservation because they are not known to occur in statutory protected areas or are only known from relatively small protected areas. The latter may not be able to ensure the long-term survival of the species. The rate and extent of loss of habitat outside protected areas is likely to be a grave threat to species that are not protected or that are inadequately conserved in statutory protected areas. The standardised vernacular names proposed here provide a tool for communicating provincial conservation plans and concerns with stakeholders in KwaZulu-Natal and for stimulating interest in cicadas amongst land users, environmental impact assessment practitioners, biologists, naturalists and citizen scientists.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Armstrong, Adrian J , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140586 , vital:37901 , DOI: 10.3897/afrinvertebr.60.35130
- Description: Public understanding of the goals of applied biology and conservation is promoted by showcasing charismatic or significant organisms using vernacular names. Conservation activities in the province of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa, are prioritising taxa that have high rates of provincial endemism, such as snails, earthworms, millipedes and cicadas. To assist wider public engagement in these activities, an assessment of endemism of the cicadas of KwaZulu-Natal is presented along with a dichotomous, 37-couplet key for the identification of males, based mainly on externally visible morphology and colouration. Standardised English vernacular names coined following a simple naming convention are proposed. Forty-two percent (16 out of 38) of the cicada species known from KwaZulu-Natal are endemic to the province. Photographs of some of the species are included to facilitate their identification. Photographs can be used for identification of various species providing that the diagnostic characters are visible in the photographs. For this purpose, photographs may have to be taken of hand-held individuals. Some of the endemic species are of particular concern for conservation because they are not known to occur in statutory protected areas or are only known from relatively small protected areas. The latter may not be able to ensure the long-term survival of the species. The rate and extent of loss of habitat outside protected areas is likely to be a grave threat to species that are not protected or that are inadequately conserved in statutory protected areas. The standardised vernacular names proposed here provide a tool for communicating provincial conservation plans and concerns with stakeholders in KwaZulu-Natal and for stimulating interest in cicadas amongst land users, environmental impact assessment practitioners, biologists, naturalists and citizen scientists.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Culicoides species as potential vectors of African horse sickness virus in the southern regions of South Africa:
- Riddin, Megan A, Venter, G J, Labuschagne, K, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Riddin, Megan A , Venter, G J , Labuschagne, K , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140727 , vital:37913 , DOI: 10.1111/mve.12391
- Description: African horse sickness (AHS), a disease of equids caused by the AHS virus, is of major concern in South Africa. With mortality reaching up to 95% in susceptible horses and the apparent reoccurrence of cases in regions deemed non‐endemic, most particularly the Eastern Cape, epidemiological research into factors contributing to the increase in the range of this economically important virus became imperative. The vectors, Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae), are considered unable to proliferate during the unfavourable climatic conditions experienced in winter in the province, although the annual occurrence of AHS suggests that the virus has become established and that vector activity continues throughout the year. Surveillance of Culicoides within the province is sparse and little was known of the diversity of vector species or the abundance of known vectors, Culicoides imicola and Culicoides bolitinos. Surveillance was performed using light trapping methods at selected sites with varying equid species over two winter and two outbreak seasons, aiming to determine diversity, abundance and vector epidemiology of Culicoides within the province. The research provided an updated checklist of Culicoides species within the Eastern Cape, contributing to an increase in the knowledge of AHS vector epidemiology, as well as prevention and control in southern Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Riddin, Megan A , Venter, G J , Labuschagne, K , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140727 , vital:37913 , DOI: 10.1111/mve.12391
- Description: African horse sickness (AHS), a disease of equids caused by the AHS virus, is of major concern in South Africa. With mortality reaching up to 95% in susceptible horses and the apparent reoccurrence of cases in regions deemed non‐endemic, most particularly the Eastern Cape, epidemiological research into factors contributing to the increase in the range of this economically important virus became imperative. The vectors, Culicoides (Diptera: Ceratopogonidae), are considered unable to proliferate during the unfavourable climatic conditions experienced in winter in the province, although the annual occurrence of AHS suggests that the virus has become established and that vector activity continues throughout the year. Surveillance of Culicoides within the province is sparse and little was known of the diversity of vector species or the abundance of known vectors, Culicoides imicola and Culicoides bolitinos. Surveillance was performed using light trapping methods at selected sites with varying equid species over two winter and two outbreak seasons, aiming to determine diversity, abundance and vector epidemiology of Culicoides within the province. The research provided an updated checklist of Culicoides species within the Eastern Cape, contributing to an increase in the knowledge of AHS vector epidemiology, as well as prevention and control in southern Africa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Deeper knowledge of shallow waters: reviewing the invertebrate fauna of southern African temporary wetlands
- Bird, Matthew S, Mlambo, Musa C, Wasserman, Ryan J, Dalu, Tatenda, Holland, Alexandra J, Day, Jenny A, Villet, Martin H, Bilton, David T, Barber-James, Helen M, Brendonck, Luc
- Authors: Bird, Matthew S , Mlambo, Musa C , Wasserman, Ryan J , Dalu, Tatenda , Holland, Alexandra J , Day, Jenny A , Villet, Martin H , Bilton, David T , Barber-James, Helen M , Brendonck, Luc
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140784 , vital:37918 , DOI: 10.1007/s10750-018-3772-z
- Description: Temporary lentic wetlands are becoming increasingly recognised for their collective role in contributing to biodiversity at the landscape scale. In southern Africa, a region with a high density of such wetlands, information characterising the fauna of these systems is disparate and often obscurely published. Here we provide a collation and synthesis of published research on the aquatic invertebrate fauna inhabiting temporary lentic wetlands of the region. We expose the poor taxonomic knowledge of most groups, which makes it difficult to comment on patterns of richness and endemism.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Bird, Matthew S , Mlambo, Musa C , Wasserman, Ryan J , Dalu, Tatenda , Holland, Alexandra J , Day, Jenny A , Villet, Martin H , Bilton, David T , Barber-James, Helen M , Brendonck, Luc
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140784 , vital:37918 , DOI: 10.1007/s10750-018-3772-z
- Description: Temporary lentic wetlands are becoming increasingly recognised for their collective role in contributing to biodiversity at the landscape scale. In southern Africa, a region with a high density of such wetlands, information characterising the fauna of these systems is disparate and often obscurely published. Here we provide a collation and synthesis of published research on the aquatic invertebrate fauna inhabiting temporary lentic wetlands of the region. We expose the poor taxonomic knowledge of most groups, which makes it difficult to comment on patterns of richness and endemism.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Molecular phylogeny of Chondrocyclus (Gastropoda: Cyclophoridae), a widespread genus of sedentary, restricted-range snails:
- Cole, Mary L, Raheem, Dinarzarde C, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Cole, Mary L , Raheem, Dinarzarde C , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140761 , vital:37916 , DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2018.09.018
- Description: The genus Chondrocyclus Ancey, 1898 contains the majority of southern African members of the Cyclophoridae, a large family of operculate land snails. We present the first molecular phylogeny of the genus based on two mitochondrial genes (16S and CO1) and complement this with an appraisal of morphological characters relating to the shell and soft parts. Worn shells on which some descriptions and records of different species were based appear to be indistinguishable morphologically, creating taxonomic confusion. We show that Chondrocyclus s.l. underwent two major radiations, one Afromontane and the other largely coastal.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Cole, Mary L , Raheem, Dinarzarde C , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140761 , vital:37916 , DOI: 10.1016/j.ympev.2018.09.018
- Description: The genus Chondrocyclus Ancey, 1898 contains the majority of southern African members of the Cyclophoridae, a large family of operculate land snails. We present the first molecular phylogeny of the genus based on two mitochondrial genes (16S and CO1) and complement this with an appraisal of morphological characters relating to the shell and soft parts. Worn shells on which some descriptions and records of different species were based appear to be indistinguishable morphologically, creating taxonomic confusion. We show that Chondrocyclus s.l. underwent two major radiations, one Afromontane and the other largely coastal.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Out of Africa?: a dated molecular phylogeny of the cicada tribe Platypleurini Schmidt (Hemiptera: Cicadidae), with a focus on African genera and the genus Platypleura Amyot and Audinet‐Serville
- Price, Benjamin W, Marshall, David C, Barker, Nigel P, Simon, Chris, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Price, Benjamin W , Marshall, David C , Barker, Nigel P , Simon, Chris , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140704 , vital:37911 , DOI: 10.1111/syen.12360
- Description: The Platypleurini is a large group of charismatic cicadas distributed from Cape Agulhas in South Africa, through tropical Africa, Madagascar, India and eastern Asia to Japan, with generic diversity concentrated in equatorial and southern Africa. This distribution suggests the possibility of a Gondwanan origin and dispersal to eastern Asia from Africa or India. We used a four-gene (three mitochondrial) molecular dataset, fossil calibrations and molecular clock information to explore the phylogenetic relationships of the platypleurine cicadas and the timing and geography of their diversification. The earliest splits in the tribe were found to separate forest genera in Madagascar and equatorial Africa from the main radiation, and all of the Asian/Indian species sampled formed a younger clade nested well within the African taxa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Price, Benjamin W , Marshall, David C , Barker, Nigel P , Simon, Chris , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140704 , vital:37911 , DOI: 10.1111/syen.12360
- Description: The Platypleurini is a large group of charismatic cicadas distributed from Cape Agulhas in South Africa, through tropical Africa, Madagascar, India and eastern Asia to Japan, with generic diversity concentrated in equatorial and southern Africa. This distribution suggests the possibility of a Gondwanan origin and dispersal to eastern Asia from Africa or India. We used a four-gene (three mitochondrial) molecular dataset, fossil calibrations and molecular clock information to explore the phylogenetic relationships of the platypleurine cicadas and the timing and geography of their diversification. The earliest splits in the tribe were found to separate forest genera in Madagascar and equatorial Africa from the main radiation, and all of the Asian/Indian species sampled formed a younger clade nested well within the African taxa.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Pigs vs people: the use of pigs as analogues for humans in forensic entomology and taphonomy research
- Matuszewski, Szymon, Hall, Martin J R, Moreau, Gaétan, Schoenly, Kenneth G, Tarone, Aaron M, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Matuszewski, Szymon , Hall, Martin J R , Moreau, Gaétan , Schoenly, Kenneth G , Tarone, Aaron M , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140557 , vital:37898 , DOI: 10.1007/s00414-019-02074-5
- Description: Most studies of decomposition in forensic entomology and taphonomy have used non-human cadavers. Following the recommendation of using domestic pig cadavers as analogues for humans in forensic entomology in the 1980s, pigs became the most frequently used model cadavers in forensic sciences. They have shaped our understanding of how large vertebrate cadavers decompose in, for example, various environments, seasons and after various ante- or postmortem cadaver modifications. They have also been used to demonstrate the feasibility of several new or well-established forensic techniques. The advent of outdoor human taphonomy facilities enabled experimental comparisons of decomposition between pig and human cadavers. Recent comparisons challenged the pig-as-analogue claim in entomology and taphonomy research. In this review, we discuss in a broad methodological context the advantages and disadvantages of pig and human cadavers for forensic research and rebut the critique of pigs as analogues for humans. We conclude that experiments using human cadaver analogues (i.e. pig carcasses) are easier to replicate and more practical for controlling confounding factors than studies based solely on humans and, therefore, are likely to remain our primary epistemic source of forensic knowledge for the immediate future. We supplement these considerations with new guidelines for model cadaver choice in forensic science research.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Matuszewski, Szymon , Hall, Martin J R , Moreau, Gaétan , Schoenly, Kenneth G , Tarone, Aaron M , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140557 , vital:37898 , DOI: 10.1007/s00414-019-02074-5
- Description: Most studies of decomposition in forensic entomology and taphonomy have used non-human cadavers. Following the recommendation of using domestic pig cadavers as analogues for humans in forensic entomology in the 1980s, pigs became the most frequently used model cadavers in forensic sciences. They have shaped our understanding of how large vertebrate cadavers decompose in, for example, various environments, seasons and after various ante- or postmortem cadaver modifications. They have also been used to demonstrate the feasibility of several new or well-established forensic techniques. The advent of outdoor human taphonomy facilities enabled experimental comparisons of decomposition between pig and human cadavers. Recent comparisons challenged the pig-as-analogue claim in entomology and taphonomy research. In this review, we discuss in a broad methodological context the advantages and disadvantages of pig and human cadavers for forensic research and rebut the critique of pigs as analogues for humans. We conclude that experiments using human cadaver analogues (i.e. pig carcasses) are easier to replicate and more practical for controlling confounding factors than studies based solely on humans and, therefore, are likely to remain our primary epistemic source of forensic knowledge for the immediate future. We supplement these considerations with new guidelines for model cadaver choice in forensic science research.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Rapid recovery of macroinvertebrates in a South African stream treated with rotenone:
- Bellingan, Terence A, Hugo, Sanet, Woodford, Darragh J, Gouws, Jeanne, Villet, Martin H, Weyl, Olaf L F
- Authors: Bellingan, Terence A , Hugo, Sanet , Woodford, Darragh J , Gouws, Jeanne , Villet, Martin H , Weyl, Olaf L F
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140751 , vital:37915 , DOI: 10.1007/s10750-019-3885-z
- Description: South Africa’s Cape Fold Ecoregion supports a unique freshwater fish assemblage with many endemics. To mitigate impacts of alien invasive fishes on this unique assemblage, nature conservation authority CapeNature used rotenone to remove smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) from the Rondegat River. We investigated whether the rotenone treatments had an adverse impact on the aquatic macroinvertebrate community over the long-term, the first study of its kind in Africa. We monitored macroinvertebrates within treated and untreated (control) sites on multiple sampling events for 2 years before and 2 years after two rotenone treatments. We analysed the difference in invertebrate abundance between treatment and control sites before and after treatment, using generalised linear mixed models with sampling event as a random factor to partition out natural fluctuations in abundances over time.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Bellingan, Terence A , Hugo, Sanet , Woodford, Darragh J , Gouws, Jeanne , Villet, Martin H , Weyl, Olaf L F
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140751 , vital:37915 , DOI: 10.1007/s10750-019-3885-z
- Description: South Africa’s Cape Fold Ecoregion supports a unique freshwater fish assemblage with many endemics. To mitigate impacts of alien invasive fishes on this unique assemblage, nature conservation authority CapeNature used rotenone to remove smallmouth bass (Micropterus dolomieu) from the Rondegat River. We investigated whether the rotenone treatments had an adverse impact on the aquatic macroinvertebrate community over the long-term, the first study of its kind in Africa. We monitored macroinvertebrates within treated and untreated (control) sites on multiple sampling events for 2 years before and 2 years after two rotenone treatments. We analysed the difference in invertebrate abundance between treatment and control sites before and after treatment, using generalised linear mixed models with sampling event as a random factor to partition out natural fluctuations in abundances over time.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
Spatial and Seasonal Distribution of Forensically Important Blow Flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in Makhanda, Eastern Cape, South Africa:
- Williams, Kirstin A, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Williams, Kirstin A , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140716 , vital:37912 , DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjz056
- Description: The seasonal activity of adults of eight forensically important blow fly species [Calliphora croceipalpis (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Jaennicke, Lucilia sericata (Meigen) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), L. cuprina (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Chrysomya chloropyga (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Ch. albiceps (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Ch. marginalis (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Ch. putoria (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Ch. megacephala (Fabricius) (Diptera: Calliphoridae)] was quantified from collections in Makhanda, South Africa. Flies were collected in traps baited with chicken liver and placed in the field at eight locations for four consecutive days each fortnight for 14 mo. The seasonal distribution of each species compared well to published seasonal distributions of these blow flies elsewhere in South Africa, with evidence of year-to-year variation within seasons that might be explained by weather. This information is important for determining when and where certain species are likely to occur and will be of use in forensic investigations and myiasis management plans.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
- Authors: Williams, Kirstin A , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2019
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140716 , vital:37912 , DOI: 10.1093/jme/tjz056
- Description: The seasonal activity of adults of eight forensically important blow fly species [Calliphora croceipalpis (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Jaennicke, Lucilia sericata (Meigen) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), L. cuprina (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Chrysomya chloropyga (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Ch. albiceps (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Ch. marginalis (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Ch. putoria (Wiedemann) (Diptera: Calliphoridae), Ch. megacephala (Fabricius) (Diptera: Calliphoridae)] was quantified from collections in Makhanda, South Africa. Flies were collected in traps baited with chicken liver and placed in the field at eight locations for four consecutive days each fortnight for 14 mo. The seasonal distribution of each species compared well to published seasonal distributions of these blow flies elsewhere in South Africa, with evidence of year-to-year variation within seasons that might be explained by weather. This information is important for determining when and where certain species are likely to occur and will be of use in forensic investigations and myiasis management plans.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2019
A molecular phylogeny of the cicadas (Hemiptera: Cicadidae) with a review of tribe and subfamily classification:
- Marshall, David C, Moulds, Max, Hill, Kathy B R, Price, Benjamin W, Wade, Elizabeth J, Owen, Christopher L, Goemans, Geert, Marathe, Kiran, Sarkar, Vivek, Cooley, John R, Sanborn, Allen F, Kunte, Krushnamegh, Villet, Martin H, Simon, Chris
- Authors: Marshall, David C , Moulds, Max , Hill, Kathy B R , Price, Benjamin W , Wade, Elizabeth J , Owen, Christopher L , Goemans, Geert , Marathe, Kiran , Sarkar, Vivek , Cooley, John R , Sanborn, Allen F , Kunte, Krushnamegh , Villet, Martin H , Simon, Chris
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140601 , vital:37902 , DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4424.1.1
- Description: A molecular phylogeny and a review of family-group classification are presented for 137 species (ca. 125 genera) of the insect family Cicadidae, the true cicadas, plus two species of hairy cicadas (Tettigarctidae) and two outgroup species from Cercopidae. Five genes, two of them mitochondrial, comprise the 4992 base-pair molecular dataset. Maximum-likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic results are shown, including analyses to address potential base composition bias. Tettigarcta is confirmed as the sister-clade of the Cicadidae and support is found for three subfamilies identified in an earlier morphological cladistic analysis. A set of paraphyletic deep-level clades formed by African genera are together named as Tettigomyiinae n. stat. Taxonomic reassignments of genera and tribes are made where morphological examination confirms incorrect placements suggested by the molecular tree, and 11 new tribes are defined (Arenopsaltriini n. tribe, Durangonini n. tribe, Katoini n. tribe, Lacetasini n. tribe, Macrotristriini n. tribe, Malagasiini n. tribe, Nelcyndanini n. tribe, Pagiphorini n. tribe, Pictilini n. tribe, Psaltodini n. tribe, and Selymbriini n. tribe). Tribe Tacuini n. syn. is synonymized with Cryptotympanini, and Tryellina n. syn. is synonymized with an expanded Tribe Lamotialnini. Tribe Hyantiini n. syn. is synonymized with Fidicinini. Tribe Sinosenini is transferred to Cicadinae from Cicadettinae, Cicadatrini is moved to Cicadettinae from Cicadinae, and Ydiellini and Tettigomyiini are transferred to Tettigomyiinae n. stat from Cicadettinae. While the subfamily Cicadinae, historically defined by the presence of timbal covers, is weakly supported in the molecular tree, high taxonomic rank is not supported for several earlier clades based on unique morphology associated with sound production.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Marshall, David C , Moulds, Max , Hill, Kathy B R , Price, Benjamin W , Wade, Elizabeth J , Owen, Christopher L , Goemans, Geert , Marathe, Kiran , Sarkar, Vivek , Cooley, John R , Sanborn, Allen F , Kunte, Krushnamegh , Villet, Martin H , Simon, Chris
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140601 , vital:37902 , DOI: 10.11646/zootaxa.4424.1.1
- Description: A molecular phylogeny and a review of family-group classification are presented for 137 species (ca. 125 genera) of the insect family Cicadidae, the true cicadas, plus two species of hairy cicadas (Tettigarctidae) and two outgroup species from Cercopidae. Five genes, two of them mitochondrial, comprise the 4992 base-pair molecular dataset. Maximum-likelihood and Bayesian phylogenetic results are shown, including analyses to address potential base composition bias. Tettigarcta is confirmed as the sister-clade of the Cicadidae and support is found for three subfamilies identified in an earlier morphological cladistic analysis. A set of paraphyletic deep-level clades formed by African genera are together named as Tettigomyiinae n. stat. Taxonomic reassignments of genera and tribes are made where morphological examination confirms incorrect placements suggested by the molecular tree, and 11 new tribes are defined (Arenopsaltriini n. tribe, Durangonini n. tribe, Katoini n. tribe, Lacetasini n. tribe, Macrotristriini n. tribe, Malagasiini n. tribe, Nelcyndanini n. tribe, Pagiphorini n. tribe, Pictilini n. tribe, Psaltodini n. tribe, and Selymbriini n. tribe). Tribe Tacuini n. syn. is synonymized with Cryptotympanini, and Tryellina n. syn. is synonymized with an expanded Tribe Lamotialnini. Tribe Hyantiini n. syn. is synonymized with Fidicinini. Tribe Sinosenini is transferred to Cicadinae from Cicadettinae, Cicadatrini is moved to Cicadettinae from Cicadinae, and Ydiellini and Tettigomyiini are transferred to Tettigomyiinae n. stat from Cicadettinae. While the subfamily Cicadinae, historically defined by the presence of timbal covers, is weakly supported in the molecular tree, high taxonomic rank is not supported for several earlier clades based on unique morphology associated with sound production.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
The uses of Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius, 1794)(Diptera: Calliphoridae) in forensic entomology:
- Badenhorst, Rozane, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Badenhorst, Rozane , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140631 , vital:37905 , DOI: 10.1080/20961790.2018.1426136
- Description: Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius, 1794) occurs on every continent and is closely associated with carrion and decaying material in human environments. Its abilities to find dead bodies and carry pathogens give it a prominence in human affairs that may involve prosecution or litigation, and therefore forensic entomologists. The identification, geographical distribution and biology of the species are reviewed to provide a background for approaches that four branches of forensic entomology (urban, stored-product, medico-criminal and environmental) might take to investigations involving this fly.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Badenhorst, Rozane , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140631 , vital:37905 , DOI: 10.1080/20961790.2018.1426136
- Description: Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius, 1794) occurs on every continent and is closely associated with carrion and decaying material in human environments. Its abilities to find dead bodies and carry pathogens give it a prominence in human affairs that may involve prosecution or litigation, and therefore forensic entomologists. The identification, geographical distribution and biology of the species are reviewed to provide a background for approaches that four branches of forensic entomology (urban, stored-product, medico-criminal and environmental) might take to investigations involving this fly.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Trophic preference of southern African dung beetles (Scarabaeoidea: Scarabaeinae and Aphodiinae) and its influence on bioindicator surveys:
- Tocco, Claudia, Balmer, Jonathan P, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Tocco, Claudia , Balmer, Jonathan P , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140796 , vital:37919 , DOI: 10.1111/aje.12523
- Description: Environmental assessments using bioindicators gain value if the interpretability of the indicator used is high, and it is clear how survey methods affect survey comparisons. Because dung beetles are favoured as bioindicators, we studied the trophic preference of a southern African beetle community and its potential effects on surveys of beetle diversity using manual sampling of droppings and pitfall traps baited with carnivore, ruminant or nonruminant dung. Manual sampling showed no significant differences between dung types in either dung beetles abundance or species richness. Generalised linear mixed models of total and endocoprid abundances, species richness and Real Shannon index of trap samples showed higher dung beetle diversity associated with ruminant than with nonruminant dung, which in turn was significantly preferred over carnivore dung.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
- Authors: Tocco, Claudia , Balmer, Jonathan P , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2018
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140796 , vital:37919 , DOI: 10.1111/aje.12523
- Description: Environmental assessments using bioindicators gain value if the interpretability of the indicator used is high, and it is clear how survey methods affect survey comparisons. Because dung beetles are favoured as bioindicators, we studied the trophic preference of a southern African beetle community and its potential effects on surveys of beetle diversity using manual sampling of droppings and pitfall traps baited with carnivore, ruminant or nonruminant dung. Manual sampling showed no significant differences between dung types in either dung beetles abundance or species richness. Generalised linear mixed models of total and endocoprid abundances, species richness and Real Shannon index of trap samples showed higher dung beetle diversity associated with ruminant than with nonruminant dung, which in turn was significantly preferred over carnivore dung.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2018
Decoupled reciprocal subsidies of biomass and fatty acids in fluxes of invertebrates between a temperate river and the adjacent land:
- Moyo, Sydney, Chari, Lenin D, Villet, Martin H, Richoux, Nicole B
- Authors: Moyo, Sydney , Chari, Lenin D , Villet, Martin H , Richoux, Nicole B
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140843 , vital:37923 , DOI: 10.1007/s00027-017-0529-0
- Description: Streams and riparian areas are tightly coupled through reciprocal trophic subsidies, and there is evidence that these subsidies affect consumers in connected ecosystems. Most studies of subsidies consider only their quantity and not their quality. We determined the bidirectional exchange of organisms between the Kowie River and its riparian zone in South Africa using floating pyramidal traps (to measure insect emergence) and pan traps (to capture infalling invertebrates).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Moyo, Sydney , Chari, Lenin D , Villet, Martin H , Richoux, Nicole B
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140843 , vital:37923 , DOI: 10.1007/s00027-017-0529-0
- Description: Streams and riparian areas are tightly coupled through reciprocal trophic subsidies, and there is evidence that these subsidies affect consumers in connected ecosystems. Most studies of subsidies consider only their quantity and not their quality. We determined the bidirectional exchange of organisms between the Kowie River and its riparian zone in South Africa using floating pyramidal traps (to measure insect emergence) and pan traps (to capture infalling invertebrates).
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
Determination of species and instars of the larvae of the Afrotropical species of Thanatophilus Leach, 1817 (Coleoptera, Silphidae)
- Daniel, Claire A, Midgley, John M, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Daniel, Claire A , Midgley, John M , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: article , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/59682 , vital:27638 , doi: 10.3897/afrinvertebr.58.12966
- Description: Thanatophilus micans and T. mutilatus have significance for forensic entomology. Their larvae are therefore described and a key is provided for identifying the larvae of Afrotropical Silphidae based on morphological characters. It is shown that seven common species of Thanatophilus can be distinguished by a 360 bp mtDNA sequence from the cytochrome oxidase I gene.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Daniel, Claire A , Midgley, John M , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: article , text
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/59682 , vital:27638 , doi: 10.3897/afrinvertebr.58.12966
- Description: Thanatophilus micans and T. mutilatus have significance for forensic entomology. Their larvae are therefore described and a key is provided for identifying the larvae of Afrotropical Silphidae based on morphological characters. It is shown that seven common species of Thanatophilus can be distinguished by a 360 bp mtDNA sequence from the cytochrome oxidase I gene.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
Determination of species and instars of the larvae of the Afrotropical species of Thanatophilus Leach, 1817 (Coleoptera, Silphidae)
- Daniel, Claire A, Midgley, John M, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Daniel, Claire A , Midgley, John M , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/440652 , vital:73800 , https://doi.org/10.3897/ AfrInvertebr.58.12966
- Description: Thanatophilus micans and T. mutilatus have significance for forensic entomology. Their larvae are therefore described and a key is provided for identifying the larvae of Afrotropical Silphidae based on morphological characters. It is shown that seven common species of Thanatophilus can be distinguished by a 360 bp mtDNA sequence from the cytochrome oxidase I gene.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Daniel, Claire A , Midgley, John M , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2017
- Subjects: To be catalogued
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/440652 , vital:73800 , https://doi.org/10.3897/ AfrInvertebr.58.12966
- Description: Thanatophilus micans and T. mutilatus have significance for forensic entomology. Their larvae are therefore described and a key is provided for identifying the larvae of Afrotropical Silphidae based on morphological characters. It is shown that seven common species of Thanatophilus can be distinguished by a 360 bp mtDNA sequence from the cytochrome oxidase I gene.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
Forensic entomotoxicology revisited: towards professional standardisation of study designs
- Da Silva, Erica I T, Wilhelmi, Brendan S, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Da Silva, Erica I T , Wilhelmi, Brendan S , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140819 , vital:37921 , DOI: 10.1007/s00414-017-1603-9
- Description: Forensic entomotoxicology is the use of insects as evidence of whether a toxicant is present in an environment such as a corpse, river or landscape. The earliest overtly forensic study was published in 1977, and since then, at least 63 papers have been published, most of them focused on the detection of toxicants in insects or on effects of toxicants on diverse insect indicator taxa. A comprehensive review of the published literature revealed various inconsistencies between studies that could be addressed by introducing standard protocols for such studies. These protocols could include selecting widespread and common model organisms (such as Lucilia sericata, Calliphora vicina, Chrysomya megacephala and Dermestes maculatus) and model toxicants (e.g. morphine and amitriptyline) to build up comparative databases; developing a standard matrix for use as a feeding substrate; setting guidelines for statistically adequate sample sizes; and deploying more sophisticated analytical methods from the general field of toxicology.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Da Silva, Erica I T , Wilhelmi, Brendan S , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140819 , vital:37921 , DOI: 10.1007/s00414-017-1603-9
- Description: Forensic entomotoxicology is the use of insects as evidence of whether a toxicant is present in an environment such as a corpse, river or landscape. The earliest overtly forensic study was published in 1977, and since then, at least 63 papers have been published, most of them focused on the detection of toxicants in insects or on effects of toxicants on diverse insect indicator taxa. A comprehensive review of the published literature revealed various inconsistencies between studies that could be addressed by introducing standard protocols for such studies. These protocols could include selecting widespread and common model organisms (such as Lucilia sericata, Calliphora vicina, Chrysomya megacephala and Dermestes maculatus) and model toxicants (e.g. morphine and amitriptyline) to build up comparative databases; developing a standard matrix for use as a feeding substrate; setting guidelines for statistically adequate sample sizes; and deploying more sophisticated analytical methods from the general field of toxicology.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
Nocturnal oviposition behavior of blowflies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in the southern hemisphere (South Africa and Australia) and its forensic implications:
- Williams, Kirstin A, Wallman, James F, Lessard, Bryan D, Kavazos, Christopher R J, Mazungula, D Nkosinathi, Villet, Martin H
- Authors: Williams, Kirstin A , Wallman, James F , Lessard, Bryan D , Kavazos, Christopher R J , Mazungula, D Nkosinathi , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140832 , vital:37922 , DOI: 10.1007/s12024-017-9861-x
- Description: Published research has offered contradictory evidence of the occurrence of nocturnal oviposition by carrion-breeding blowflies, a behavior that can affect the interpretation of forensic estimates of a minimum post mortem interval (minPMI) by up to 12 hours, depending on latitude and season. The majority of published studies are from the northern hemisphere. Field experiments were conducted in South Africa and Australia that extend observations to species of the southern hemisphere. Various vertebrate carrion was exposed at night in summer under different lunar phases and/or artificial lighting, and in woodland and pasture areas. Three laboratory experiments were also conducted. No nocturnal oviposition occurred outdoors in Berry, Australia, but Lucilia cuprina, Lucilia sericata and Chrysomya megacephala laid eggs outdoors at night in Grahamstown and Durban, South Africa. In laboratory experiments L. sericata, L. cuprina, Chrysomya chloropyga and Chrysomya putoria laid eggs and Calliphora augur deposited larvae under nocturnal conditions.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Williams, Kirstin A , Wallman, James F , Lessard, Bryan D , Kavazos, Christopher R J , Mazungula, D Nkosinathi , Villet, Martin H
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140832 , vital:37922 , DOI: 10.1007/s12024-017-9861-x
- Description: Published research has offered contradictory evidence of the occurrence of nocturnal oviposition by carrion-breeding blowflies, a behavior that can affect the interpretation of forensic estimates of a minimum post mortem interval (minPMI) by up to 12 hours, depending on latitude and season. The majority of published studies are from the northern hemisphere. Field experiments were conducted in South Africa and Australia that extend observations to species of the southern hemisphere. Various vertebrate carrion was exposed at night in summer under different lunar phases and/or artificial lighting, and in woodland and pasture areas. Three laboratory experiments were also conducted. No nocturnal oviposition occurred outdoors in Berry, Australia, but Lucilia cuprina, Lucilia sericata and Chrysomya megacephala laid eggs outdoors at night in Grahamstown and Durban, South Africa. In laboratory experiments L. sericata, L. cuprina, Chrysomya chloropyga and Chrysomya putoria laid eggs and Calliphora augur deposited larvae under nocturnal conditions.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
Species identification of adult African blowflies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) of forensic importance:
- Lutz, Lena, Williams, Kristin A, Villet, Martin H, Ekanem, Mfon
- Authors: Lutz, Lena , Williams, Kristin A , Villet, Martin H , Ekanem, Mfon
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140620 , vital:37904 , DOI: 10.1007/s00414-017-1654-y
- Description: Necrophagous blowflies can provide an excellent source of evidence for forensic entomologists and are also relevant to problems in public health, medicine, and animal health. However, access to useful information about these blowflies is constrained by the need to correctly identify the flies, and the poor availability of reliable, accessible identification tools is a serious obstacle to the development of forensic entomology in the majority of African countries. In response to this need, a high-quality key to the adults of all species of forensically relevant blowflies of Africa has been prepared, drawing on high-quality entomological materials and modern focus-stacking photomicroscopy. This new key can be easily applied by investigators inexperienced in the taxonomy of blowflies and is made available through a highly accessible online platform. Problematic diagnostic characters used in previous keys are discussed.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017
- Authors: Lutz, Lena , Williams, Kristin A , Villet, Martin H , Ekanem, Mfon
- Date: 2017
- Language: English
- Type: text , article
- Identifier: http://hdl.handle.net/10962/140620 , vital:37904 , DOI: 10.1007/s00414-017-1654-y
- Description: Necrophagous blowflies can provide an excellent source of evidence for forensic entomologists and are also relevant to problems in public health, medicine, and animal health. However, access to useful information about these blowflies is constrained by the need to correctly identify the flies, and the poor availability of reliable, accessible identification tools is a serious obstacle to the development of forensic entomology in the majority of African countries. In response to this need, a high-quality key to the adults of all species of forensically relevant blowflies of Africa has been prepared, drawing on high-quality entomological materials and modern focus-stacking photomicroscopy. This new key can be easily applied by investigators inexperienced in the taxonomy of blowflies and is made available through a highly accessible online platform. Problematic diagnostic characters used in previous keys are discussed.
- Full Text:
- Date Issued: 2017