Entomofauna necrófaga associada a carcaças de mamíferos encontradas em rodovias do município de Santa Helena, Paraná

Abstract

This study aimed to identify the necrophagous entomofauna associated with mammalian carcasses found in highways of Santa Helena, PR. The carcasses were removed from highways and placed inside of a metal tray containing sand and sawdust. A steel frame lined with steel mesh was placed on carcasses to avoid predation by other vertebrates. Each carcass was monitored throughout the decomposition period. Active and passive capture of insects and other arthropods were carried out every two days. Some immature insects were raised in the laboratory until the adult emerged for identification. Three carcasses were observed: 1 - Cerdocyon thous Linnaeus, 1766 (Canidae) with 7.5 kg, observed in April 2017; 2 - Felis catus Linnaeus, 1758 (Felidae) with 3.5 kg, observed in May and June 2017; 3 - Didelphis aurita (Wied, Neuwild, 1826) (Didelphidae) with 2.4 kg observed in September 2017. In total, 2,988 arthropods were collected in the three carcasses evaluated. Most arthropods belong to families of great forensic importance, such as Calliphoridae, Sarcophagidae and Drosophilidae of Diptera; Dermestidae, Staphylinidae and Silphidae of Coleoptera. Chrysomya albiceps (Wiedemann, 1819), Chrysomya putoria (Wiedemann,1818), Chrysomya megacephala (Fabricius,1794), Oxelytrum discicolle (Brullé, 1840) end Dermestes maculatus (Degeer, 1774) were found in the carcasses. The results of this study are similar to the other studies carried out in southern Brazil.