The estimation of the postmortem interval (PMI) is still one of the most challenging issues in
forensic investigations, especially in cases in which advanced transformative phenomena have taken
place. The dating of skeletal remains is even more difficult and sometimes only a rough
determination of the PMI is possible.
Recent studies suggest that plant analysis can provide a reliable estimation for skeletal remains
dating, when traditional techniques are not applicable. Forensic Botany is a relatively recent
discipline that includes many sub-disciplines such as Palynology, Anatomy, Dendrochronology,
Limnology, Systematic, Ecology and Molecular Biology.
In a recent study, Cardoso et al. (21) used botanical evidence for the first time to establish the PMI
of human skeletal remains found in a forested area of northern Portugal from the growth rate of
mosses and shrub roots. The present paper deals with a case in which the study of the growth rate of
the bryophyte Leptodyctium riparium (Hedw.) Warnst, was used in estimating the PMI of some
human skeletal remains that were found in a wooded area near Perugia, in Central Italy