An Experiment to Characterize the Decomposer Community Associated with Carcasses (Sus scrofa domesticus) on Oahu, Hawaii

Pig (Sus scrofa domesticus) carcasses were decomposed on the soil surface of a terrestrial habitat on the island of Oahu,Hawaii to begin characterizing the decomposer community. Results showed that carcasses can decompose rapidly on Oahu, primarily due tothe activity of fly larvae, with~80% of mass lost by 8 days (~220 ADD) postmortem. Scavenging was conducted exclusively by the smallIndian mongoose (Herpestes javanicus), first feeding on larvae then feeding on the remains. Carcasses were habitats of warm temperature, littleto no oxygen, slightly acidic/neutral pH, and high sodium concentration. Larval masses selected for a microbial community comprised of multi-ple bacterial taxa from phyla Firmicutes and Proteobacteria, particularly generaClostridium,Proteus, andProvidencia. These larval masseswere well established from 3 to 8 days (~90 to~220 ADD) postmortem. These data provide helpful, novel insight into the structure and activ-ity of carcass decomposer communities on Oahu.