Fujikawa has also discovered that insect feces fluoresce under a light source with a wavelength of 465 nanometers and an orange filter, whereas blood will not. This novel insight could be used by crime-scene investigators to distinguish blood spatter from bug activity. She published her research in journals that are used by law enforcement, such as the Journal of Forensic Sciences (see here and here), specifically so that they could easily access and utilize this information.

With a grant from the National Institute of Justice, Fujikawa is now focusing on how blowflies develop under different temperature conditions. This is a key piece of information needed to narrow down PMI since time of death is a calculation based on the age of maggots growing and grazing on a carcass. Fujikawa's research is the first comprehensive study of its kind, Higley says, adding, "I wouldn't be surprised if 50 to 60 years from now, [people] are still referring to her work."

5 Comments

1. 1. HubertB 08:34 AM 9/14/12

   I wonder how the insects of the dry Sand Hills of Nebraska and their approach to carrion compares to that of the Everglades of Florida or the Forests of Upstate New York. Insects living in sand could be quite different from those living in peat or clay.

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2. 2. KipHansen 02:26 PM 9/14/12

   Now's the time for Fujikawa to take the project to a 'body farm' to test her hypotheses and results on human remains.
   
   We aren't all that interested in road kill - though I've investigated a few in my time....

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3. 3. Poppa beer 11:59 PM 9/15/12

   It stands to reason that a beetle can start to devour a corpse before a fly's eggs can hatch and begin doing their job, as the fly can only drink and must leave the actual eating to others

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4. 4. Postman1 01:22 PM 9/16/12

   And the inevitable question: How many jurors have been swayed by faulty forensics? I hope none, but you know the attorneys will be on this, like stink on a corpse.

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5. 5. torrenticola 04:03 PM 10/2/12

   Has the arthropod succession part of this article been published? I have not seen it in the scientific literature.

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