Taphonomic processes in a contemporary inhumation context. Megaselia scalaris (Diptera, Phoridae) larvae as a disturbing agent?

Abstract

The study of cadaveric insect remains recovered in inhumation contexts allows drawing inferences about the circumstances surrounding death, about mortuary practices, and about the taphonomic history of human corpses. In this study the presence of the fly Megaselia scalaris associated with an infant skeleton buried in a contemporary cemetery is analyzed. The finding of the isolated mandibular central incisors, along with a large number of dead pupae and puparia within their alveolar cavities, prompted the analysis of the role of this species in the loss of skeletal integrity. In the present contribution, a monoespecific post-inhumation colonization by M. scalaris is identified, being for the first time proposed as a disturbing agent actively involved in the disarticulation of dental elements, produced by the feeding of necrophagous larvae. An integration of knowledge drawn from bioarchaeology and forensic entomology provides a significant contribution to the interpretation of taphonomic processes in funerary contexts.