Morphometric Geometry a tool for Quantitative Genetic Comparison between females of some medical and Forensic Insect Species in Iraq

Abstract

The study was conducted using geometric morphometric analysis on the right wings of adult females of some forensic insects, including Chrysomya megacephala and Sarcophaga carnaria, as well as medical insects, including Musca domestica. The aim of this study was to analyze the morphological differences, diagnostic features, and comparisons between medical and forensic insects in Diyala Province based on right wing morphology and wing centroid size (MCS), considering the medical and forensic significance of C. megacephala, S. carnaria, and M. domestica due to their close association with human life and the transmission of numerous pathogens. 45 right wings had utilized 15 wings from every species—and 19 landmarks had recognized on every single wing to assess alterations in shape and size in this study. Substantial changes had noticed in the right wing centroid size and wing form amongst female scientific and medical insects. The outcomes showed that the mean right wing centroid size is 1576.52 for C. megacephala, 1734.74 for S. carnaria, and 1191.35 for M. domestica. Statistical assessment by the F-test and t-test shown pure and important alterations. Particularly, after matching C. megacephala and S. carnaria, the results were F = 1.75 (P = 0.31), T = 5.36 (P = 1.05), and AD = 158.22. In the comparison between C. megacephala and M. domestica, the readings were F = 1.43 (P = 0.51), T = 12.54 (P = 5.22), and AD = 385.16. Finally, comparing S. carnaria with M. domestica yielded F = 1.22 (P = 0.71), T = 20.46 (P = 0.00), and AD = 543.38. Likewise,  the analysis OF ANOVA for the right wing shape among female forensic and medical insects, with C. megacephala, S. carnaria, and M. domestica, exposed changes in morphological diversity (F = 0.63, P = 0.54). In the same way, investigation of the size of wing showed differences among the studied species (F = 0.16, P = 1.00). The analysis Linear regression strengthened the dependability of geometric morphometrics (GM) as an active device for species categorization and the recognition of genetic alterations. The statistical results Proved or showed strong quantitative hereditary variances in the shape-size relationship of the wings among the three fly species. The first canonical axis (Y1) displayed a strong link between shape and size (r = 0.759, r² = 0.576), while the second canonical axis (Y2) showed a relatively weaker association. These results emphasize the morphometric diversity among species and affirm the possible of the landmark-based geometric morphometric method as a powerful way for identifying and cataloging insect species depend on phenotypic characteristics.