Lauren Weidner
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Phone: 602-543-6068
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Mail code: 1253Campus: West
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Dr. Lauren Weidner is an Assistant Professor of Forensic Entomology and the lab director of the Forensic Entomology & Wildlife Laboratory (FEWL) in the School of Interdisciplinary Forensics (SIF) housed in the New College School of Interdisciplinary Arts and Sciences on West Valley Campus. She obtained her bachelor’s degree in forensic science with a focus in molecular biology from John Jay College of Criminal Justice in 2010 followed by her Ph.D. in Entomology from Rutgers University in 2016. Dr. Weidner is currently the president of the North American Forensic Entomology Association (NAFEA) and a Diplomate of the American Board of Forensic Entomology (ABFE) being one of twenty-three certified in North America.
The mission of FEWL is to increase knowledge of insects as bioindicators in forensic contexts through scientific research and broad educational outreach including young learners, university students and forensic professionals. FEWL uses a forensic science lens to conduct a wide ranging scope of research that includes but is not limited to: the ecology and behavior of primary insect carrion colonizers, working with state and federal agencies to combat the trafficking of vulnerable insects, the impacts of different variables on the community assemblage of blow flies, applying forensic entomology to archaeological investigations (i.e., gravesites, refuse pits), and insect wildlife biodiversity in ecologically sensitibe regions including Organ Pipe Cactus National Monument, Petrified Forensic National Park, and the Abisko Scientific Polar Research Station in Sweden.
Dr. Weidner’s work in forensic entomology has been published in various journals including The Journal of Forensic Science, Journal of Medical Entomology and Forensic Science International. She has presented her work at local, regional, national and international conferences spanning both entomology and forensic backgrounds.
Ph.D. in Entomology from Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey
B.S. in Forensic Science from John Jay College of Criminal Justice
Book Chapters
Gemmellaro, M.D. and L.M. Weidner. 2019. The Professional History of Forensic Entomology In Forensic Entomology: The Utility of Arthropods in Legal Investigations, 3rd ed. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
Huntington, T.E., Weidner, L.M., and R.D. Hall. 2019. Introduction: Current Perceptions and Status of Forensic Entomology In Forensic Entomology: The Utility of Arthropods in Legal Investigations, 3rd ed. CRC Press, Boca Raton, FL.
Papers
Weidner, L., & Powell, G. (2023). Forensically important sap beetles (Coleoptera: Nitidulidae) of North America. Journal of Forensic Entomology, 1.
Monzon, M. A., Weidner, L. M., Rusch, T. W., Nehrozoglu, S., & Hamilton, G. (2022). High Temperature Limits of Survival and Oviposition of Phormia regina (Meigen) and Lucilia sericata (Meigen). Insects, 13(11), 991.
Noblesse, A. P., Meeds, A. W., & Weidner, L. M. (2022). Blow Flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) and the American Diet: Effects of Fat Content on Blow Fly Development. Journal of Medical Entomology, 59(4), 1191-1197.
Jeong, Y., Weidner, L. M., Pergande, S., Gemmellaro, D., Jennings, D. E., & Hans, K. R. (2022). Biodiversity of Forensically Relevant Blowflies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) at the Anthropology Research Facility in Knoxville, Tennessee, USA. Insects, 13(2), 109.
Hans, K. R., Yoho, K., Robbins, H., & Weidner, L. M. (2021). A review of the Forensic Entomology literature in the midwestern United States. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Forensic Science, 3(5), e1424.
Weidner, L. M., Byrd, J., Sutton, L., & Hans, K. R. (2021). Forensic Entomology: An introduction to the literature of the United States. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Forensic Science, 3(5), e1435.
Weidner, L. M., & Hans, K. R. (2021). A review of Forensic Entomology literature in the Northeastern United States. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Forensic Science, 3(5), e1402.
Weidner, L.M., M.D. Gemmellaro, J.K. Tomberlin, and G.C. Hamilton. 2017. Evaluation of bait traps as a means to predict initial blow fly (Diptera: Calliphoridae) communities associated with decomposing swine remains in New Jersey, US. For. Sci. Int. 278: 95-100.
Hans, K. R., Yoho, K., Parrott, J. J., & Weidner, L. M. (2021). A review of Forensic Entomology literature in the Mountain Prairie region of the United States. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Forensic Science, 3(5), e1412.
Weidner, L. M., Meeds, A. W., Noblesse, A. P., & Hans, K. R. (2021). A review of Forensic Entomology literature in the southwestern United States. Wiley Interdisciplinary Reviews: Forensic Science, 3(5), e1421.
Weidner, L., & Powell, G. (2021). Key to the forensically important beetle (Insecta: Coleoptera) families of North America. The Journal of Forensic Science Education, 3(1).
Nigoghosian, G., Weidner, L. M., & Stamper, T. I. (2021). A technique to mount Sarcophagidae and Calliphoridae (Diptera) larvae for forensic identification using geometric morphometrics. Forensic Science International: Synergy, 3, 100135.
Weidner, L. M., Nigoghosian, G., Yoho, K. C., Parrott, J. J., & Hans, K. R. (2020). An analysis of forensically important insects associated with human remains in Indiana, USA. Journal of Forensic Sciences, 65(6), 2036-2041.
Weidner, L.M., G. Nigoghosian, C.G. Hanau, and D.E. Jennings. 2020. Analysis of alternative food sources for rearing entomological evidence. J. Med. Entomol. Doi:10.1093/jme/tjaa060
Gemmellaro, M.D., C. Bucolo, E. Musumeci, and L.M. Weidner. 2018. First observations of initial blow fly (Diptera: Calliphoridae) activity on lava fields and in subterranean environments in Sicily in cool temperatures. J. Med. Entomol. 55 (6): 1622-1626.
Weidner, L.M., M.A. Monzon, and G.C. Hamilton. 2016. Death eaters respond to the dark mark of decomposition by day and night: observations of initial insect activity on pig carcasses. Int. J. Legal Med. 130: 1633-1637.
Weidner, L.M., D.E. Jennings, J.K. Tomberlin and G.C. Hamilton. 2015. Seasonal and geographic variation in biodiversity of forensically important blow flies (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in New Jersey, USA. J. Med. Entomol. 52: 937-946
Puvabanditsin, S., L. Malik, L.M. Weidner, S. Jadhav, J. Sanderman, and R. Mehta. 2014. Neonatal umbilical cord myiasis in New Jersey. Journal of Perinatology. 34: 718-719.
Weidner, L.M., J.K. Tomberlin, and G.C. Hamilton. 2014. Development of Lucilia coeruleiviridis (Diptera: Calliphoridae) in New Jersey, USA. Florida Entomologist. 97: 849-851.
Courses
2025 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 493 | Honors Thesis |
| FOR 492 | Honors Directed Study |
| FOR 496 | Forensic Science Service Learn |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| BIO 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| ENV 493 | Honors Thesis |
| FOR 200 | Forensic Science Seminar |
| FOR 486 | Peer Mentor Forensic Sci |
2024 Fall
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 492 | Honors Directed Study |
| FOR 414 | Fund of Forensic Entomology |
| FOR 414 | Fund of Forensic Entomology |
| ENV 492 | Honors Directed Study |
| FOR 493 | Honors Thesis |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
2024 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 493 | Honors Thesis |
| FOR 492 | Honors Directed Study |
| FOR 496 | Forensic Science Service Learn |
| ENV 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| BIO 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| ENV 493 | Honors Thesis |
| FOR 200 | Forensic Science Seminar |
2023 Fall
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 486 | Peer Mentor Forensic Sci |
| FOR 492 | Honors Directed Study |
| ENV 492 | Honors Directed Study |
| FOR 493 | Honors Thesis |
2023 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 493 | Honors Thesis |
| FOR 410 | Testimony&Ethics Forensic Sci |
| ENV 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 492 | Honors Directed Study |
| FOR 496 | Forensic Science Service Learn |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| BIO 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| ENV 493 | Honors Thesis |
2022 Fall
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 410 | Testimony&Ethics Forensic Sci |
| FOR 486 | Peer Mentor Forensic Sci |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 492 | Honors Directed Study |
| ENV 414 | Fund of Forensic Entomology |
| FOR 414 | Fund of Forensic Entomology |
| ENV 492 | Honors Directed Study |
2022 Summer
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
2022 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 493 | Honors Thesis |
| FOR 410 | Testimony&Ethics Forensic Sci |
| FOR 496 | Forensic Science Service Learn |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
2021 Fall
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 410 | Testimony&Ethics Forensic Sci |
| FOR 486 | Peer Mentor Forensic Sci |
| FOR 494 | Special Topics |
| ENV 494 | Special Topics |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 492 | Honors Directed Study |
2021 Summer
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
2021 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 493 | Honors Thesis |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 410 | Prof Practices in Forensic Sci |
| FOR 503 | Forensic Entomology |
| ENV 499 | Individualized Instruction |
2020 Fall
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 492 | Honors Directed Study |
| FOR 286 | Prin. of Forensic Science |
| FOR 105 | Phys Evid and the Crime Scene |
| FOR 486 | Peer Mentor Forensic Sci |
2020 Spring
| Course Number | Course Title |
|---|---|
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 106 | Biol Behind the Crime Scene |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
| FOR 499 | Individualized Instruction |
American Academy of Forensic Science
International Association for Identification
Society for Wildlife Forensic Science
Entomological Society of America
North American Forensic Entomology Association
Arizona Identification Council