| The postmortem interval (PMI), aids forensic investigation of circumstances surrounding death
by providing an estimation to narrow the time between the death event and body recovery via assessment of decomposition rate. The universality of decomposition rates remains highly
contested, researchers agree that environmental specificity is fundamental to the predictability of
PMI. Quantification of decomposition rates in various Intermountain West environments remain untested. Therefore, replication of PMI studies are needed in unique environmental contexts to articulate patterns of decomposition within that environment, while also reducing taphonomic biases that may occur in a given study. This project assessed the decomposition rate of Sus scrofa (domestic pig) as a human proxy in two microclimates, differing in elevation, located in
Southeastern Idaho and tested accuracy with PMI predictions. Elevation differences and accuracy estimations were noted less than ideal, due to the fact that decomposition had stagnated
on specimens. |