The insects, the body and the bog

The discovery of a bog body at Tumbeagh Bog, Lemanaghan, Co. Offaly, afforded a rare opportunity to examine well-preserved human remains and the environment in which they were found. Samples for insect remains and pollen were taken from close to the body. A column of insect samples from a peat section face near the body was taken, after consultation with Dr Wil Casparie, in order to provide close correlation between environmental proxies. Insects are useful environmental indicators. The habitat-specific nature of many species of beetles (Coleoptera), in particular, can help to determine the environmental conditions pertaining at the time of their deposition. From the results outlined below, it is clear that their real value to this study lies in their ability to provide a detailed picture of environmental change up to and including the time of deposition of the body