Indicator Species
Definition
A species whose known arrival window in the local succession series allows the analyst to set a bound on elapsed time. Its presence sets a minimum; its absence, when it would normally already be there, implies an upper limit.
- Field
- Forensic entomology, PMI estimation
- Method
- Successional method
- Presence
- Sets a minimum elapsed time
- Expected absence
- Sets an upper bound on elapsed time
Common questions
Why does the absence of an indicator species matter as much as its presence?+
If a species reliably colonises within a known window and normal environmental conditions would have allowed it to arrive, its absence implies the body has not yet reached that stage of decomposition, bounding the PMI estimate from the other direction.
What can make an indicator species unreliable in a given case?+
Local climate, burial, wrapping, insecticide exposure, or an unusual season can delay or block a species that would normally colonise on schedule, so entomologists corroborate the succession pattern with regional baseline data before relying on a single indicator.
Related terms
- Carrion Community
- The full assemblage of arthropods associated with a decomposing body at a given point in time: calyptrate flies, silphid and staphylinid beetles,...
- Dermestidae (Hide Beetles)
- Beetles in the family Dermestidae that colonise remains in the dry or skeletal stage, feeding on desiccated tissue, skin, and hair. Their...
- Faunal Succession
- The predictable, roughly ordered replacement of one insect community by another as a cadaver's chemistry and physical condition change through decomposition. Each...
- Reference Succession Series
- A documented record of which species colonise carcasses in a given region and season, in what order, and for roughly how long....
- Silphidae (Burying Beetles and Allies)
- A family of carrion beetles that arrive during active or advanced decay. Some bury small carcasses for larval feeding; others compete with...