Premium
Diel Activity and Effect of Carcass Decomposition on the Attractiveness to the Forensically Important Species Oxelytrum Discicolle (Coleoptera: Silphidae) †
Author(s) -
Lira Luiz Antonio,
Macedo Marcos Patrício,
PujolLuz José Roberto,
Vasconcelos Simão Dias
Publication year - 2019
Publication title -
journal of forensic sciences
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.715
H-Index - 96
eISSN - 1556-4029
pISSN - 0022-1198
DOI - 10.1111/1556-4029.13954
Subject(s) - diel vertical migration , nocturnal , carrion , biology , wet season , ecology , attractiveness , zoology , psychology , psychoanalysis
Oxelytrum discicolle is a carrion beetle commonly found in the Neotropical region, mainly associated with cadavers and carcasses. Information on behavior related to the likelihood of cadaver colonization is scarce. We performed two field experiments in peri‐urban forest in Brazil in order to strengthen our knowledge on O. discicolle behavior. In the first experiment, we assessed the preference for piglet carcasses at different stages of decomposition offered simultaneously in two seasons, dry and rainy, while in the second experiment we investigated the diel activity of adults. A total of 493 adults were collected in the experiments. A significantly higher abundance was detected in the rainy season. There was a marked preference for carcasses at advanced stages. Adults exhibited a typical nocturnal behavior, the number trapped at night was 17 times greater than those collected during the day. Oxelytrum discicolle is nocturnal species that prefers carcasses in advanced stage of decomposition.