The effect of scavenger mutilation on insect succession at impala carcasses in southern Africa

Two impala ( Aepyceros melampus ) carcasses were subjected to varying degrees of mutilation by large mammalian scavengers.
Daily observations of carcass surface condition revealed that the timing and frequency of scavenger feeding visits had a profound effect upon carcass decomposition: a single feeding visit 10 days after death at the first carcass produced an extended sequence of decay. At the second carcass, repeated visits two, three and five days after death, resulted in a faster rate of decay.
The colonization of the carcasses by necrophagous insects was characterized by a distinct sequence of arrival. The abundance of Calliphoridae, Histeridae and Dermestidae was correlated with surface condition at both carcasses. Thus, these insects provided an indication of the state of carcass decay. However, as the rate of decomposition was different at each carcass, the temporal abundance of necrophagous insects was not the same at both carcasses.
The results suggest that the temporal abundance of key insect families provide an inaccurate indication of the time of death in circumstances when carcasses have subsequently been mutilated.