Dynamics of the Blowfly, Calliphora erythrocephala, Within Carrion

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Abstract
Laboratory and field studies of the growth and development of a population of blowfly larvae (C. erythrocephala Mg.) within naturally-colonized rodent carrion are described. The role of the maggots in the decay of the carrion is also considered. Total assimilation of carrion materials by the blowflies within a corpse was estimated at 353,339.5 .+-. 11,272.6 cal. Assimilation by an individual larva during its development was 186.18 .+-. 70.81. The mean weight of an individual larva when, as a prepupa, it left the carcass to pupate in the soil below, was 24.35 mg dry wt. This is equivalent to 147.39 cal; this figure, compared with that for assimilation shown above (186.18 cal) emphasizes the efficiency of food use by the larvae. Total weight of prepupae derived from a carcass in the field was estimated at 2811.3 .+-. 949.0 mg dry wt (mean weight of carcass 26.7 g; dry wt (10.6 g). Under both laboratory and field conditions competition produces the only significant mortality of larvae within a carcass: 16.65% of the maggot population die before they leave the carcass to pupate. After migration, prepupae in the field are subject to a predation rate of 66%. A further 40.2% of pupae fail to produce adult flies: from an initial colonization of perhaps 280-290 eggs per carcass, an emergence in the field of some 50 flies may be observed. Competition for food within the carcass results in larval mortality and a reduction in size and weight of individual prepupae and pupae from more crowded carcasses. Total larval biomass is directly related to carcass weight. The pattern of growth and development of Calliphora larvae within the corpse is considered in regard to the adaptations shown towards exploitation of a resource limited both temporally and spatially.

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