Diptera Larvae Collected from the Ocular Cavity of a Cadaver in Active Decay

[hermantheshocker]

On June 28, 2009, a 70-year-old male corpse was found in his house in Pisa, Italy. He was lying on the floor, between the bed and the sofa. He was wearing a shirt, undershirt, blue jeans, and underpants. Doors and windows were closed, and the house was described as messy and dirty.

Sadly there was only this one image with this case.


Diptera larvae collected from the ocular cavity of a cadaver in active decay.

The body was in active decay stage. External examination of the body showed large areas of skin slippage on the thorax and on the upper limbs. The head and the neck presented black/brown discoloration areas. No sign of injury was observed. The cause of death was natural and was defined, on histological evidence, as an ischemia on sclerotic myocardium.

Entomological evidence was collected during the autopsy. Fly eggs and larvae were present on the neck area and inside the oral cavity. Maggots were also present in the right armpit. The deceased male lived alone and was known to be an alcohol abuser who did not often have interactions with his family. He had not been seen for 6 days.

The entomological evidence estimates the beginning of the colonization to be 4–5 days. This result is in agreement with other evidence obtained later by the investigator indicating a PMI (postmortem interval) of 5–6 days. The difference between this information and the colonization time is 1 day. The colonization time does not take into account the time required for flies to reach the body, in this specific case, the time is 1 day and can be explained by the sealed condition of the environment in which the body was found.

Insects or their remains can be found both at crime scenes and in archaeological contexts. If properly collected and analysed, insects act as a relevant tool in the reconstruction of past events, whether they are forensic or archaeological. The most important information that insects can provide about the circumstances surrounding death is the PMI and the season of death. Moreover, insects can provide information about body displacement, presence of drugs, pre-burial exposure and body concealment. A close interaction between all the specialists working at the crime scene or involved in archaeological research, is the ‘conditio sine qua non’ (indispensable/absolutely necessary) for a better understanding and reconstruction of past events.

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This post is for educational purposes only and is nonprofit. Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act of 1976; Allowance is made for "Fair Use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, satire, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. No copyright infringement intended. Image has been upscaled and sharpened/enhanced. Some of the text might have been shortened and simplified, and/or reorganized for online view. Original case report by Bugelli V., Forni D., Bassi L.A. - J of For Sci, 2014.

[rohmell]

Thanks again for another great post.

[anorexorcist]

Thank you Herman for the high quality post.

[LittleNightmare]

What a hideous face!

[Sa Bal]

This image better become a cover on a poorly recorded black metal ep

[cocopoops]

Best posts on here!! Appreciated ������

[Karma]

Maggots doing a great clean up job. Bet he smelled pretty over ripe.
Thanks for posting.

[northernlights]

That's OK Herman only one picture of this case is enough for me. More than enough actually. Anything maggots - . But also extreme fascination with it.

[ChristySD]

This one looks GOOEY!!!! Makes you just want to poke it with a stick.......