Identification of the Species Constituents of Maggot Populations Feeding on Decomposing Remains—Facilitation of the Determination of Post Mortem Interval and Time Since Tissue Infestation through Application of Machine Learning and Direct Analysis in Real Time-Mass Spectrometry.

The utilization of entomological specimens such as larvae (maggots) for the estimation of time since infestation of tissue for post mortem interval determination, or in investigation of elder care and animal abuse cases, requires accurate determination of insect species identity. Because the larvae of multiple species are visually highly similar and difficult to distinguish, it is customary for species determination of maggots to be made by rearing them to maturity so that the gross morphological features of the adult can be used to accurately identify the species. This is a time-consuming and resource intensive process which also requires that the sample be viable. The situation is further complicated when the maggot mass being sampled is comprised of multiple species. Therefore, a method for accurate species identification, particularly for mixtures, is needed. It is demonstrated here that direct analysis in real time-high resolution mass spectrometric (DART-HRMS) analysis of ethanol suspensions contain...