The Earth breaks down the remains of a deceased corpse. Maggots crawl on the decaying body, feasting on a new snack. A putrid scent pollutes the airwaves surrounding the broken carcass, causing disgust to all victims. Once you see the body, it’s not regular in the slightest; for what your eyes perceive is…

A chicken?

Forensic science students conducted a body farm research project starting March 31 where they examined how different chickens undergo decomposition in a variety of situations. The span of this project was ten days, making today the tenth day of observation.

  “I’ve enjoyed this project, in the sense that I’m learning things about decomposition that I never knew,” junior Yanina Gonzalez Villegas said. “However, the maggots and the smell are not so pleasant.”

Forensic science teacher, and newly named Teacher of the Year, Dejah Bushong created the environments students chose to observe chicken decomposition and supervised the project. She set up a controlled cage, an airtight container, a buried area, a hanging area and buckets full of water, saltwater, hydrogen peroxide and bleach and placed a chicken in each location. 

“The purpose of this is to look at decomposition over time and to see how different variables affect the rate of decomposition,” Bushong said. “More than anything else, they’d probably take away the scientific method. We do it in a kind of a fun and disgusting way to help them remember it.”

This side of the forensic field is a make-or-break for students deciding their future interests. Junior Shelbie Bull enjoyed seeing the differences between how each chicken decomposed.

“I neither like or dislike this project,” she said. “It’s gross and makes me want to puke, but it’s cool to see the different ways the chickens decompose.”

Gonzalez Villegas finds the chicken submerged in salt the most interesting since the body is more intact compared to the rest.

“I find it progressively shrinking kind of funny, and it is not as unsettling as some of the other chickens to observe,” she said.

With its disgusting sight and smell, this project helps students experience a deeper insight into how the forensic field works.

“A couple of things from this project will stick with me,” Gonzalez Villegas said. “I will never forget the different results that every chicken gave. Not so positively, however, the smell and the unsightly chicken corpses are not something that is easily forgotten.”