Chapter 1182 - 1112: On Species
"These maggots aren’t a local species. Specifically, how can you tell?" Li Chang asked, trembling slightly.
His graduate research wasn’t in forensic entomology, but if there were such promising directions and practical projects, retaking his exams to pursue a PhD in this area wouldn’t be out of the question.
Jiang Yuan, on the other hand, seemed to lack academic sensitivity and wasn’t particularly interested in the academic aspect. He casually said, "Maggots from different places look quite different. You should be able to see that."
"I know flies have different distribution regions, but this is a beauty fly, right? There are so many species of beauty flies, and their distribution overlaps. How did you discern it... what I mean is, shouldn’t we consult some books for comparison or do a DNA test? Just to ensure accuracy..." Li Chang’s voice trailed off as he mentioned basics from textbooks, feeling a bit ashamed as a Zhejiang University graduate.
Jiang Yuan smiled and said, "If we need to send it for inspection, doing a DNA test is fine, as it makes for a good report. But there’s no need to check books; you can identify a beauty fly species at a glance. As for regional distribution, many books and papers just say the same thing."
Li Chang had countless retorts but couldn’t voice any. After hesitating, he decided to ask the hardest question: "If we don’t consult books, how can we judge the distribution areas of different beauty fly species?"
"It’s not that we don’t rely on books and papers, but they’re just references. The main focus is on the state of the corpse itself." Jiang Yuan brought the topic back to front-line work, saying, "Looking at this corpse’s beauty flies, you actually see several types. Redheaded beauty flies are ubiquitous, found almost everywhere. The bright green fly is the same, but here we have the black beauty fly and the scarlet-faced gold fly. Though a few of them are here locally, you must consider the timeframe."
"Hmm?"
The larvae of the scarlet-faced gold fly are smaller and fewer. The larvae in later stages are obviously weaker, indicating that they don’t have the upper hand in the competition for development on this corpse. The reason could be they arrived too late, or they couldn’t adapt to the early or mid-late stages of the corpse’s environment, or both," Jiang Yuan concluded.
Li Chang couldn’t resist glancing at the piles of maggot corpses, but distinguishing between the scarlet-faced gold fly and other maggots, he couldn’t even tell which were the weaker ones.