Scavenging study could help Edmonton police better search for human remains 

Edmonton police hope the results of a local scavenging study will translate into more efficient searches for human remains.

Starting Wednesday, Shari Forbes and her research team will be studying how animals scavenge pig carcasses in the Edmonton area.

Forbes, a forensic scientist and professor at the Université du Québec à Trois-Rivières, said at a news conference on Tuesday that the goal is to identify scavenging animals and learn how they scatter remains — information that could help EPS better search for human remains.

"The information that we're getting through Dr. Forbes and all of her research team is going to be invaluable for not only the canine unit, but our entire police service," said Cst. Dennis Dalziel, detection dog trainer for the EPS Canine Unit.

Dalziel said EPS conducts between 20 and 30 searches for human remains each year.

Undisclosed locations

Forbes and her colleagues will be placing pig carcasses at two sites in the Edmonton area. 

She would not disclose the locations, but said neither is near urban activity. One is located within the city limits and one is in a rural area. At EPS' request, she said, one of the sites is close to the river valley. 

These out-of-the-way locations were chosen to replicate areas where human remains are typically found, Forbes said.

"And we don't have to be concerned about the public walking into the experiment," she added.

Motion-detecting cameras will send updates of the animals to Forbes' phone and at the end of the study, police dogs will search both areas for the remains.

Why pigs?

Forbes directs a facility in Quebec — informally known as the "body farm" — where scientists study how human bodies decompose.

• Canada's 1st forensics body farm is coming this summer
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In Edmonton, her team is studying pig carcasses because pigs' bodies resemble humans and decompose in a similar way, she said.

Takeaways for police

Forbes said she has conducted similar studies in Ontario, and police there have already applied what they learned to their case work. 

She said one of the emerging insights is that remains are scattered wider than was previously thought.

Dog handlers have been taught to search a 100-metre radius for human remains, she said, but her research has shown remains being moved more than 300 metres away.

The animals' scavenging can offer police clues as to where human remains can end up.

Forbes said her research has revealed animals taking remains into trees and coyote dens. 

Since scavengers differ by region, results for one province won't help police in another.

In Edmonton, Forbes expects to observe a range of creatures, including vultures, ravens, fishers, rodents, coyotes, cougars, lynx and black bears.

She said she plans to recreate the study in different seasons and will immediately share real-time results with police.