Empty Puparium
Definition
The hardened larval skin (puparium) left behind after adult emergence. It retains chemical residues including drug metabolites and can be the only insect matrix available at late-stage decomposition scenes.
Related terms
- Bioaccumulation in Insects
- The uptake and concentration of a toxicant from the substrate (decomposing tissue) into insect tissues during larval feeding. Concentration in larval tissue...
- Development Rate Alteration
- A drug- or toxin-induced shift in the time from oviposition to pupation. Stimulant compounds tend to accelerate development; certain heavy metals and...
- Entomotoxicology
- The analysis of insect tissue for drugs and toxins when decomposition has made conventional biological fluids unavailable. Blow-fly larvae feeding on a...
- Larval Crop Contents
- The partially digested material in the larval foregut, reflecting the most recent substrate the larva fed on. Useful for detecting what the...
- PMI Correction
- Adjustment of the post-mortem interval estimate to account for documented drug or toxin effects on larval development rate. Without correction, a drug-accelerated...
Explained in
- Entomotoxicology: Drugs and Poisons in Carrion InsectsThe hardened larval skin (puparium) left behind after adult emergence. It retains chemical residues including drug metabolites and can be the only insect matri...