Carrion insects and their application to forensic investigations in Richmond, NSW with particular reference to significant Coleoptera

The attendance and succession of carrion insects at remains is ecologically and forensically significant. In a forensic context, these insects are commonly utilised for minimum post-mortem interval (PMI) estimates in cases involving suspicious death and homicides. Preceding this study, information on the carrion insects present in the Sydney Basin and factors affecting their attendance and succession at remains had not been available. As a result, this study presents information on the attendance and succession of carrion insects at carcasses during different seasons, sites, and levels of access in Richmond, NSW, where many of the species recorded at carrion are representative of the Sydney Basin. Additionally, while previous Australian studies on carrion insects have focused on fly species of significance or their hymenopteran parasitoids, coleopteran species of significance have been largely neglected. This study, in an attempt to rectify this problem, investigated the identification, phylogeny, and feeding habits of a number of significant beetle taxa