An Experimental Study of Vertebrate Scavenging Behavior in a Northwest European Woodland Context

Vertebrate scavengers can modify surface deposited human remains which can hinder forensic investigations. The effects of such scavenging vary between species and regions. Published research into the effects of the scavenging of human remains is dominated by work from North America with few studies...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of forensic sciences 2014-09, Vol.59 (5), p.1333-1342
Main Authors: Young, Alexandria, Stillman, Richard, Smith, Martin J., Korstjens, Amanda H.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animal behavior
Animals
Behavior, Animal
Birds
Deer
Europe
Feeding Behavior
forensic archeology
forensic science
Forensic sciences
Forests
Human remains
Mice
Northwest Europe
Postmortem Changes
scavenging
Sciuridae
Seasons
taphonomy
vertebrate scavengers
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Summary:Vertebrate scavengers can modify surface deposited human remains which can hinder forensic investigations. The effects of such scavenging vary between species and regions. Published research into the effects of the scavenging of human remains is dominated by work from North America with few studies covering Northwestern Europe. Forensic scientists, investigators, and police search officers in Northwestern Europe are often left questioning on a basic level as to which scavengers are active and how they might affect human remains. This paper presents the results of a field study utilizing deer (Cervus nippon; Capreolus capreolus) as surface deposits observed by motion detection cameras in a British woodland. The most common avian and rodent scavenger species recorded included the buzzard (Buteo buteo), carrion crow (Corvus corone), wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus), and gray squirrel (Sciurus carolinensis). The scavenging behaviors observed were affected by seasonality, rates of decomposition, and insect activity. Scavenging by buzzards, unlike carrion crows, was most frequent during fall to winter and prior to insect activity. Overall, avian scavengers modified and scavenged soft tissue. Rodents scavenged both fresh and skeletonized remains with gray squirrels only scavenging skeletal remains. Wood mice were most active in winter and scavenged both soft tissue and bone.
ISSN:0022-1198
1556-4029
DOI:10.1111/1556-4029.12468