George Otianga Owiti, Susan Underkoffler and Jason H Byrd
Volume 1, Issue 1
Published: October 29, 2025
Forensic entomology involves the utilization of insect and other arthropod colonizers in approximating the time since death, i.e., time interval between death and discovery of the cadaver/carcass or carrion/remains. This is frequently referred to as postmortem interval (PMI). The calculation of PMI can be useful when certain assumptions are met. However, determining a true PMI without proper statistical analysis has been a challenge for most entomologists. This review offers some concise overview of PMI determination methods principally based on two types of entomological development, i.e., thermal summation and insect succession. It also includes an appraisal of existing literature in forensic entomology concerning statistical applications, summarizing the forms of statistical analysis that have been, and should be utilized, with entomological evidence. The inclusion of statistical evaluation/statements of entomological data in most forensic entomology investigations have the potential of increasing the robustness of the evidence when presented to the court. Nevertheless, this requires comprehensive and accurate reference data, which the criminal justice system needs to understand in allusion to both the statistical assessment and methodologies employed to generate entomological data from laboratory and field studies. Furthermore, there is clear need to standardize terminologies and improve on the unsurpassed procedures of estimating PMI taking into account the various assumptions discussed in the literature.
George Otianga Owiti, Department of Veterinary Anatomy & Physiology, Faculty of Veterinary Medicine, University of Nairobi, Kangemi, Nairobi, Kenya.
Owiti, G, O., Underkoffler, S., Byrd, J, H. (2025). Forensic Entomology: a Review on Post-Mortem Interval and the Need for Statistics. Int J Biol Life Sci. , 1(1), 01-26.