Effects of temperature on Cochliomyia macellaria (Diptera:Calliphoridae) development.

Growth curves were studied for the egg, larva, and pupa of the secondary screwworm, Cochliomyia macellaria (F), under mean cyclic temperatures of 15.6, 21.1, 26.7, 32.2, and a constant 25.0 degrees C. Development from egg to adult under all regimes ranged from 170 to 588 h. A constant temperature regime of 25 degrees C produced a range of pupation times from 92 to 142 h, with adult emergence ranging from 196 to 261 h. The maximal preferential temperature of 39 degrees C was determined for maggots by using a gradient system. The minimal variation in the range of larval lengths and development time makes this species suitable for establishing relatively narrow confidence intervals when constructing a postmortem interval estimate for use in legal investigations.