Figure 8.

Decomposition of carcass 3sun. Top to bottom, left to right; numbers in brackets represent the days post-mortem. Early decomposition. Day 5: Bloated stage; small amount of decomposition fluids purging from mouth and nose. Day 15: Skin slippage and first loss of bristles. Day 27: Moist decomposition of the head; abdominal cavity open; massive loss of bristles over the whole carcass. Advanced decomposition. Day 53: First signs of bone exposure on the head; liquefaction of abdominal tissues; purging of decomposition fluids from the abdomen into the surrounding. On day 76, the carcass lay in brackish water for 16 h. Day 97: Carcass stiff, hard and covered with snow. Day 148: Bone exposure on the limbs (previously gnawed by rodents). Day 173: Skeletonization of the head progressing. Day 190: Notable decrease in biomass; bones of the head exposed, but still covered with cheesy substance. Note the vegetation growth surrounding the carcass. Day 203: Most soft tissues have disappeared. Skeletonization. Day 273: Bones of all body parts exposed, including the vertebra; some bones are clean and blank, others are still covered with cheesy tissue; most are disarticulated; skin is brittle and torn. Days 301, 365: Progressive skeletonization and dark discoloration of the skin; some bones still covered with greasy substance.