ABSTRACT
This chapter describes color photographs of the most common species of insects and other arthropods of forensic importance in the United States and Canada. It is important to note insects may play various roles in the process of a death investigation. Blow flies are among the first insects to discover and colonize human remains. In experimental studies, calliphorid flies have been recorded arriving at carcasses within minutes of their exposure. This blow fly species is Holarctic in distribution, as the common name implies. In the United States, it is most common from Virginia to California and northward to Alaska. The propensity with which muscid flies are found in domestic situations contributes to both their medical and forensic importance. Muscid flies are of great forensic importance due to their wide distribution, ubiquitous nature, and close association with man. They tend to arrive at bodies after the flesh flies and blow flies.
