Forensic Entomology: The Utility of Arthropods in Legal Investigations [Hardcover]

Jason H. Byrd (Editor), James L. Castner (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 28, 2000 | ISBN-10: 0849381207 | ISBN-13: 978-0849381201 | Edition: 1

Insects and other arthropods found at a death scene can provide corroborating evidence regarding both the time and place of death as well as possible antimortem and postmortem treatment of the victim. Nevertheless, most forensic investigators are not specially trained in entomology, and until now, no entomology reference has fully explored these subjects. Forensic Entomology: The Utility of Arthropods in Legal Investigations usurps this void, instructing even individuals without a background in entomology on what to search for when recovering entomological evidence at a crime scene.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 440 pages
• Publisher: CRC Press; 1 edition (September 28, 2000)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0849381207
• ISBN-13: 978-0849381201
• Product Dimensions: 10.5 x 7.1 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 2.6 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 3.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,507,224 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Missing a "key" point..., July 15, 2002

By A Customer

This review is from: Forensic Entomology: The Utility of Arthropods in Legal Investigations (Hardcover)

While this book does address a variety of necessary topics and its overall praise is well-deserved there is a gap, which means there is still a need for a textbook in forensic entomology.

For a book of this nature one would expect to be able to identify insects of forensic importance. The numerous color photos are nice to look at, but in most cases do not allow species determination at the adult level (don't even bother asking about immature idenitification!). Short species accounts are given, but much more valuable would have been the inclusion of keys (as in K. Smith's treatment of the European forensic fauna). Unfortunately this means that you have to buy another text in order to identify any specimens that you collect. You will likely have to go the Manual of Nearctic Diptera in order to identify genera of Calliphoridae, Muscidae, Phorids...

In summary, even if you buy this book you'll still need to consult a forensic entomologist and as such, I'd recommend dropping the words "Forensic Entomology" from the title. This book is written for those who do not have formal training in entomology or even a science background (i.e. arthropod, botantist, and invertebrate are all defined in the glossary).

For the authors I would highly recommend adding keys in order to increase the value of this work. Please, for the entomologists' sake place them in an appendix, but do include them. Another suggestion would be to expand the taxa covered in Table 9.1 (insect development times) and move it to the appendix. Thanks!

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Overview of Forensic Entomology, September 25, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Forensic Entomology: The Utility of Arthropods in Legal Investigations (Hardcover)

This work is extraordinarily useful to any death investigation professional. It provides an extensive overview of all aspects of forensic entomology with chapter contributions from the leading forensic entomologists in the United States and Canada. It is expertly written so that the investigator with no formal entomological training can easily understand the context of the book, while still on a level that other formally trained entomologists will find very useful. It is richly illustrated with over 150 color photos of insects of forensic importance. This allows investigators to immediately recognize forensic insects at the scene so that collection can be assured. This book is certain to become an invaluable reference for anyone in the field of forensic entomology, or those involved in the collection of entomological evidence from a death scene. It is a perfect complement to the other works published on the subject by K.G.V. Smith and E.P. Catts.

0 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Kindle edition expensive than hardcover??, July 16, 2010

By 

Ahmed Rashwan (NEWARK, NEW JERSEY, US) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Forensic Entomology: The Utility of Arthropods in Legal Investigations (Kindle Edition)

how is it possible for the kindle edition to be expensive than the hardcover edition?