Historically there have been several accounts of vague applications for and experimentation with forensic entomology and the concept of forensic entomology dates back to at least the 1300s. However, only in the last 30 years has forensic entomology been systematically explored as a feasible source for evidence in criminal investigations. Through their own experiments and own interest in arthropods and death many people have helped to lay the foundations for today's modern forensic entomology, these include Song Ci, Francesco Redi, Bergeret d’Arbois, Jean Pierre Mégnin and the German doctor Hermann Reinhard.

Song Ci

Further information: Song Ci Song Ci (also known as Sung Tz’u), was a lawyer and death investigator who lived in China in the late 13th century. In 1247 A.D. Song Ci wrote a book entitled 洗冤集錄 (commonly translated to “Washing Away of Wrongs”). In this book Song Ci depicts several cases in which he took notes on how a person died and elaborates on probable causes. He goes into detail on how to examine a corpse both before and after burial. He also explains the process of how to determine a probable cause of death. The purpose of this book was to be used as a guide for other investigators so they could assess the scene of the crime effectively. His level of detail in explaining what he observed in all his cases laid down the fundamentals for modern forensic entomologists and is the first recorded account in history of someone using forensic entomology for judicial means.[1] This book was immensely popular and represented the first time that the general public became aware that insects could be used in criminal investigations.

Francesco Redi

Further information: Francesco Redi In 1668, Italian physician Francesco Redi disproved the theory of "spontaneous generation", or abiogenesis. The accepted theory of Redi's day claimed that maggots developed spontaneously from rotting meat. In an experiment, he used samples of rotting meat that were either fully exposed to the air, partially exposed to the air, or not exposed to air at all. Redi showed that both fully and partially exposed rotting meat developed fly maggots, whereas rotting meat that was not exposed to air did not develop maggots. This discovery completely changed the way people viewed the decomposition of organisms and prompted further investigations into insect life cycles and into entomology in general.[2]

Bergeret d'Arbois

Dr Louis François Etienne Bergeret (1814-1893) was a French hospital physician, and was the first to apply forensic entomology to a case. In a case report published in 1855 he stated a general life cycle for insects and made many assumptions about their mating habits. Nevertheless these assumptions led him to the first application forensic entomology in an estimation of postmortem interval (PMI). His report used forensic entomology as tool to prove his hypothesis on how and when the person had died.[3]

Hermann Reinhard

The first systematic study in forensic entomology was conducted in 1881 by Hermann Reinhard, a German medical doctor who played a vital role in the history of forensic entomology. He exhumed many bodies and demonstrated that the development of many different types of insect species could be tied to buried bodies. Reinhard conducted his first study in east Germany, and collected many Phorid flies from this initial study. He also concluded that the development of not all the insects living with corpses underground were associated with them, since there were 15-year-old beetles who had little direct contact with them. Reinhard's works and studies were used extensively in further forensic entomology studies.

Jean Pierre Mégnin

Further information: Jean Pierre Mégnin Jean Pierre Mégnin, an army veterinarian published many articles and books on various subjects including the books Faune des Tombeaux and La Faune des Cadavres, which are considered to be among the most important forensic entomology books in history.[4] In his second book he did revolutionary work on the theory of predictable waves, or successions of insects onto corpses. By counting numbers of live and dead mites that developed every 15 days, and comparing this with his initial count on the infant, he was able to estimate how long that infant was dead.[3]
In this book he asserted that exposed corpses were subject to eight successional waves whereas buried corpses were only subject to two waves. Mégnin made many great discoveries that helped shed new light on many of the general characteristics of decaying flora and fauna. Mégnin's work and study of the larval and adult forms of insect families found in cadavers sparked the interest of future entomologists and encouraged more research in the link between arthropods and the deceased, and thereby helped to establish the scientific discipline of forensic entomology.
One modern doctor of our time that is making a diffrence in this feild is Dr. Neil Haskell. Nicknamed "The Bug Man",he is to this present date the only full time entomologist in the world. He is co-author of “Entomology and Death – A Procedural Guide”. It is changing the face of Forensics and Entomology. He is also featured in Dr. Michael Baden's book, "The New Science of Catching Killers"