Reference Material
Definition
A specimen or sample of known species, origin, or composition used to validate a method and as a positive control in ongoing casework. Building reference materials for wildlife forensics is difficult because many species are protected and collecting specimens requires permits.
- Function
- Method validation standard and positive control in casework
- Content
- Specimen of known species, origin, or composition
- Difficulty in wildlife forensics
- Protected species require permits to collect legally
Common questions
Why is building a reference material collection harder in wildlife forensics than in human forensics?+
Many species used in casework are protected under national or international law such as CITES, so acquiring voucher specimens legally requires permits, cooperation with museums or wildlife agencies, and sometimes years of accumulation, unlike human reference samples which are comparatively straightforward to obtain.
What happens to a method if no reference material exists for the species in question?+
The laboratory either cannot validate the test for that species and must qualify or withhold an identification, or it relies on published sequence or morphological data from an external source, which carries less evidentiary weight than an in-house validated reference.
Related terms
- Chain of Custody
- The documented chronological record of who collected, handled, transferred, and examined a piece of evidence. For digital evidence, chain of custody includes...
- ISO 17025
- International standard for the general requirements for the competence of testing and calibration laboratories. Covers management system requirements (document control, internal audits,...
- Method Validation
- The process of demonstrating that an analytical method does what it claims: that it correctly identifies the target analyte, at what sensitivity,...
- Proficiency Testing
- An external quality assurance programme in which a laboratory analyses blind samples distributed by an independent provider and submits results for comparison...
- SWFS
- Society of Wildlife Forensic Scientists. Professional body that publishes guidelines specific to wildlife forensic practice and supports the global community of practitioners...