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The effect of temperature on development of Sarconesia chlorogaster, a blowfly of forensic importance

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An Author Correction to this article was published on 13 November 2020

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Abstract

Purpose

The blowfly Sarconesia chlorogaster (Diptera: Calliphoridae) is of limited forensic use in South America, due to the poorly known relationship between development time and temperature. The purpose of this study was to determine development time of S. chlorogaster at different constant temperatures, thereby enabling the forensic use of this fly.

Methods

Development time of this species was examined by observing larval development at six temperatures (10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35 °C). The thermal constant (K), the minimum development threshold (t 0), and development rate were calculated using linear regressions of the development time interval at five temperatures (10–30 °C).

Results

Development interval from egg to adult varied from 14.2 to 95.2 days, depending on temperature. The t0 calculated for total immature development is 6.33 °C and the overall thermal constant is 355.51 degree-days (DD). Temperature affected the viability of pupae, at 35 °C 100 % mortality was observed.

Conclusion

Understanding development rate across these temperatures now makes development of S. chlorogaster a forensically useful tool for estimating postmortem interval.

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Acknowledgments

We thank Claudio J. Von Zuben, Marcio R. Pie, Rodrigo F. Krüger, David R. Luz, and Kevin A. Williams who provided helpful comments on a previous version of the paper. This research was partially supported by grants from the Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq) (process 312357/2006 and process 307947/2009-2) to M.O.M and Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES) to M.C.L. James J. Roper provided a careful review of the English language.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Departamento de Zoologia, Universidade Federal do Paraná, Caixa Postal 19020, Curitiba, PR, 81531-980, Brazil

    Melise Cristine Lecheta & Mauricio Osvaldo Moura

  2. Departamento de Parasitologia, Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Caixa Postal 6109, Campinas, SP, 13083-862, Brazil

    Patricia Jacqueline Thyssen

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  1. Melise Cristine Lecheta
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  2. Patricia Jacqueline Thyssen
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Correspondence to Melise Cristine Lecheta.

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Lecheta, M.C., Thyssen, P.J. & Moura, M.O. The effect of temperature on development of Sarconesia chlorogaster, a blowfly of forensic importance. Forensic Sci Med Pathol 11, 538–543 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s12024-015-9727-z

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