Maggots and dead body

[neoteric]

Do you know why maggots or some other insects develop when a dead body decays? Do different kinds of dead bodies--e.g., a dead human vs dead chicken--determine what kinds of insects will develop? Do insects develop even when a dead body is in an air-tight environment? Thanks.

[rogersaurus]

Maggots don't just materialise within a dead body. A corpse attracts flies which lay eggs in the body and maggots are born, surrounded by juicy dead body goodness. In an air tight environment I suspect no insects would be present unless a creature was with the body when it was sealed in that environment, because there would be no way for anything to reach the body.

[andy hughes]

Further to the recent answer, scientists use the type and life development of maggots found in a corpse to assist them in determining the length of time since death occured.

[kahunabean]

One of the reasons people are buried 6 feet under is that creepy-crawlies can't /don't go down that far due to the pressure - that way the decomposition process is via bacteria - a more palatable thought for the bereaved.