CADAVERIC ENTOMOFAUNA IN STRANDED MARINE VERTEBRATES ON THE CENTRAL COAST OF PERU

Abstract

The aim of the present study was to assess the cadaveric entomofauna in stranded marine vertebrates on the Central Coast of Peru. The diversity of the entomofauna in the decomposition states of 291 carcasses of 18 species of marine vertebrates was determined. Each vertebrate was assigned to one of five stages of carcass decomposition: (1) fresh, (2) bloated, (3) active decomposition, (4) advanced decomposition and (5) skeletal remains. In relation to the total number of carcasses and species richness, birds were predominant. The four vertebrate species with the highest number of corpses corresponded to Otaria flavescens (Shaw, 1800), Sula variegata (Tschudi, 1843), Pelecanus thagus (Molina, 1782) and Phalacrocorax brasilianus (Gmelin, 1789). Advanced decomposition and skeletal remains were the most frequent corpses. The four orders of the cadaveric entomofauna present were Dermaptera, Hymenoptera, Coleoptera, and Diptera, with Tenebrionidae and Muscidae being the two most abundant families. There were four main species of coleopterans: Phaleria gayi, Dermestes maculatus, Phaleria maculata, and Dermestes frischii, and the five most abundant species of Diptera were Musca domestica, Lucilia sericata, Sarcophaga sp., Piophila casei and Calliphora nigribasis. In relation to ecosystem services, the following sequence was observed based on the richness and abundance of species: necrophagous > necrophilous > omnivores. The alpha and beta diversity indices showed different patterns according to the state of development of the entomofauna, the state of decomposition of the vertebrate corpses, year of evaluation and, finally, according to the four most frequent corpses of vertebrates.