Editing Forensic entomology (section)

===Sun exposure===
"Because insects are cold-blooded animals, their rate of development is more or less dependent on ambient temperature."<ref>{{cite book | veditors = Catts EP, Haskell NH | title = Entomology & Death: A Procedural Guide | location = Clemson, SC | publisher = Joyce's Print Shop, Inc. | date = 1990 | page = 5 | isbn = 978-0-9628696-0-0 }}</ref>
Bodies exposed to large amounts of sunlight will heat up, giving the insects a warmer area to develop, reducing their development time.
An experiment conducted by Bernard Greenberg and John Charles Kunich with the use of rabbit carcasses to study accumulation of degree days found that with temperature ranging in the mid 70s to high 80s the amount of developmental time for maggots was significantly reduced.<ref>{{cite book | vauthors = Greenberg B, Kunich JC |year=2002 |title=Entomology and the Law: Flies as Forensic Indicators |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |location=Cambridge, United Kingdom |isbn=978-0-521-80915-3}}</ref>

In contrast, bodies found in shaded areas will be cooler, and insects will require longer growth periods. In addition, if temperatures reach extreme levels of cold, insects instinctively know to prolong their development time in order to hatch into a more accepting and viable climate in order to increase the chance of survival and reproduction.

Furthermore, insect activity and colonization patterns can also be influenced by the length and intensity of solar exposure. Because the increasing temperature speeds up their development, insects are more likely to be active and colonize a body more quickly in places exposed to direct and extended sunlight. In comparison to shaded locations, this may result in a quicker succession of insect life and disintegration stages. On the other hand, because of the lower temperatures, shaded areas might have slower rates of insect activity and decomposition, which would delay the processes of insect colonization and decomposition.<ref>{{cite journal | vauthors = Hall RD |date=2005 |title=Entomology and the Law-Flies as Forensic Indicators |journal=Journal of Medical Entomology |volume=42 |issue=5 |pages=922|doi=10.1603/0022-2585(2005)042[0922:EATLAF]2.0.CO;2 |doi-broken-date=1 November 2024 }}</ref>