BOTANICAL

EVIDENCES
Presented by Deendayal
 Introduction
We are familiar with plants being used for pleasant and aesthetic
purposes such as a source for food, fiber, medicine, etc. But the
association of plants with cases such as poisoning (which can be
suicidal, accidental, or homicidal), or its use as a trace/transfer
evidence in criminal as well as civil cases is increasing with each
passing day. When plants become linked to criminal activities, that is
when Forensic Botany comes into play.
Forensic botany is the utilization of the plant sciences in matters
related to law, i.e., using plants or plant products as evidence to help
solve crimes such as murder, kidnapping, etc., and also to help
determine the victim’s cause of death. Forensic Botany is an integration
of Botany and Forensics. The botanical aspect majorly consists of
anatomy, growth, development, taxonomy, classification of plants that
help in the identification of the particular species of the plant, whereas
the forensic aspect deals with the recognition of appropriate evidence
at the crime scene, collection, and packaging of evidence, maintaining
the chain of custody, conducting scientific tests on the samples
collected and admissibility of the evidence in the court of law.
One of the most important reasons why plants are considered
very good and useful evidence is that the cell wall of plant cells,
as well as pollens and spores, are made of strong compounds
such as cellulose, sporopollenin, and pectin which are resistant to
destruction and thus can be identified even after a long period.
Question related to
Forensic Botany
Time of death
Circumstances related to death
Cause of death
Primary crime scene
No. of crime scene
Verification of alibi
Aids in search of suspect
 Types of
Botanical Evidences
Seeds
Pollens
Leaves
Woods
Roots
Saw Dust
Plants
Diatoms
 History
Forensic botany was first used to solve a crime in 1935. It was the Lindbergh
Case in which a young boy named Charles Lindbergh had been kidnapped.
The prime suspect of this case was Bruno Hauptmann. Arthur Koehler, an
expert of wood anatomy was amongst the many people who testified. Even
though the defense thought that the concept of the wood expert was too
bizarre and ridiculous, but the Judge thought otherwise. Arthur Koehler
presented evidence related to the ladder that was used in the kidnapping,
stating that it was a homemade ladder and also stated the different types of
wood that had been used to build the ladder. And one of the woods that was
used to build the ladder was proved to be the same wood that was found at
Hauptmann’s house, thus linking him directly to the crime.
 Principles
The application of botany for criminal investigation is based on
two key principles.

The first is Locard's exchange principle, which entails any contact

between two objects results in an exchange of matter between
them. Therefore, this principle suggests that physical evidence,
including botanical trace evidence, could be used to establish a
link between the crime scene, the criminal, and the victim.
The second principle is based on the utilization of forensic botany
methods to identify the distribution of plant species worldwide.
This approach is useful because different plant species require
different environments, water availability, soil condition, and
temperature to grow. This information could link the crime, the
suspect, and the victim
 Recognition

Chain Documentation

of
Custody Collection

Preservation
Recognization of permanent evidence one of the gretest challenge the
gensis of problem lies in the reliability on evidence that what is
relevant today may not be relevant tomorrow.

Documentation documentation is necessary to preserve the character

& manner in which the evidence was collected crime scene
photography Videotaping, & sketching& diagram each form of
documentation is conducted documentation of transient or transfer
evidencetype of evidence is very important since they may be suitable
to change overtime for example a piece of vegetation material that
was recovered from the scene but neigfher documentated nor
preserved may degrade documentation may provide additional
benefit to forensic botanist.
Collection-The collection process will usually start with the collection
of the most fragile or most easily lost evidence. Special consideration
can also be given to any evidence or objects which need to be
movedthe scientific requirement depend upon the nature of evidence
being collected forensic botanist should have magnifying glass of 10x,
scrappers for scrapping mosses & lichens felt tipped pens for
numbering bryophtyes collection.
1. Handpicking- the simplest & most effective method of establishing the
position of the material or item recovered no further search is
required and various type of metal tweezers are used to collect or to
cut the plants with stem handpicking are used to collect
wood,twigs,plant steam, roots, flower etc.
2. Tape lifting-it is not only successful & useful method but also
indispensible method for picking up the finest traces, isolates
individual constituent adhesive tape of 7.5cm is used to lift the finest
trace on the garments, clothes such as pollen and dust particle.
3. vacuuming the collection of the micro traces hidden evidences such
as sawdust pollen powder, seeds, wood dust from shirt, motor
vehicle,car clothes
 Packaging:-

1. Vegetation "PRESSING & DRYING

2. Specimens are pressed flat & dried between sheets of absorbent
blotters or semi absorbent and packed in herbarium sheet
3. Diatom- obtain a portion of femur bone
4. Packed in a glass container containing absolute alcohol.
Significance whether the bone tissue or water sample carry diatom??
Whether the diatoms from bone or tissue are similar to that found in
the water sample??
5. Saw dust, splinters pollen, cut pieces of woods are packed in vials or
plastic container
Branches of Forensic Botany
Forensic Plant Morphology

Forensic Plant Anatomy

Forensic Palynology

Forensic Dendrochronology

Forensic Limnology

Forensic Plant Systematics

Forensic Ecology
Forensic Plant Morphology
Plant morphology is the study of the external features of the
plants. The external features, such as leaves, stems, flowers, roots,
and bark, may aid in the identification of the species of the plant.
Thus, Forensic Plant Morphology refers to the application of this
knowledge in the investigation of crimes.
Besides, these features or the external structures help in making a
match between two leaf fragments, thus showing the continuity of
leaf patterns on the surface of the leaf.
Case Study Related to Plant Materials
Additionally, plant materials may provide clues as to the timing
of an incident. In the 2011 trial of Casey Anthony, plant materials
were used by the defense to refute the prosecution's timeline. In
this case, a forensic botanist determined the duration of time
that her daughter Caylee's body was in the woods, all based on
the growth of the plants in and around her remains.
 Forensic Plant Anatomy
Plant Anatomy refers to the study of the internal structure of
plants. Plant Anatomy helps in the identification as well as
classification of the plants based on specific patterns of
arrangement of the cells, which are observed on dissecting the
stem, root, or leaf. Forensic Plant Anatomy is the utilization of this
knowledge in solving crimes.
 Angiosperms & Gymnosperms
Angiosperms and gymnosperms are both seed-bearing plants with a few
similarities. This is due to the fact that gymnosperms were present for at
least 200 million years before the angiosperms evolved, and they may have
shared a common ancestor.

The main difference between angiosperms and gymnosperms is their

diversity. The diversity of angiosperms is greater than the gymnosperms.
The higher diversity indicated the angiosperms adapted to a wide plethora
of terrestrial ecosystems. Another characteristic of angiosperms is the
flowers and production of fruits.
 Forensic Palynology
Palynology broadly deals with the study of pollen grains, spores,
microscopic plant bodies that possess a characteristic feature resistance
to acidity.
Palynology further helps in proving or disproving a possible link between
particular people, objects, and places (crime scenes) that acts as vital
information for the investigation of both civil as well as criminal cases.
One of the reasons why pollen, spores, and acid-resistant microscopic
plant bodies are considered to be very reliable evidence and can deduce
whether there was a presence of a particular person or object is the fact
that different countries or even different regions of a particular country
will have their unique variety of pollen and spores.
Forensic Dendrochronology
Forensic Dendrochronology implies the scientific study of estimating
the growth rings of the tree to calculate the exact year in which these
rings were formed.
In addition to acting as evidence, the estimation of the exact year of
formation of the growth ring of the tree will act as a means of
determining the period in which the criminal activity may have
occurred.
Also, it has been noted that different species of trees have a different
pattern of ring formation depending upon various factors such as the
period over which the ring formation takes place, climatic conditions,
amount of water present in the soil during the ring formation, etc.
 Dendrochronology Dating
Dendrochronology dating is the scientific method of dating based on the
growth of a tree- rings. Each year trees produce a ring, the dimensions of
which change yearly according to the environment in which they find
themself. The ring growth during spring is wider and lighter, while the
darker, late summer growth narrows before stopping, creating a sharp
boundary. They are also influenced by temperature and precipitations.
The resulting pattern is similar to a barcode, and by comparing patterns
from a specific tree with already established chronologies,
dendrochronologists can date the time at which the rings were formed in
the exact year.
 Hardwood v/s Softwood
So first, Hardwood or angiosperms reproduce via a fruit or nut. Think of the
beautiful forests out in the Northeast where the trees lose their leaves.
These are the traditional hardwoods you think of: walnut, cherry, ash,
maple, beech.

Conversely, softwoods, also called gymnosperm, bear cones. Think of a

conifer or a Christmas tree or an evergreen, and they grow more
predominately out in the western part of North America. Species like
hemlock, Douglas fir, western red cedar, or redwood
 Forensic Limnology
Forensic Limnology involves the examination of the presence and type of
diatoms that are found on victims as well as evidence samples that are
collected from the scene of the crime.
Diatoms are nothing but microscopic algae with a characteristic feature of
having silica in their cell wall. Diatoms can be differentiated based on various
features such as their size, shape, or colour.
They are never found in domestic water due to the presence of cleaning agents
in them and thus are only found in freshwater. Even though there are a variety
of methods for collection of this data but each one of them involves the
common procedure of comparing the diatoms present at the suspected scene
of the crime with that of the diatoms present in the evidence sample collected.
 Diatoms
The members of the division bacillariophyte are known as diatoms.

Diatoms mean to cut into two.

The name of these organisms is based on the cell wall of the

diatoms that is divided into two parts.

Diatoms belong to the kingdom Protista.

Division of Diatoms- Chrysophyta or Bacillariophyta.

 General characteristics of Diatoms
Habitat:- Diatom is generally found in both freshwater and marine water.

The Shell of Diatom:- Diatoms have silica in their shell wall. Their cell wall
is called a shell or frustule. Diatoma has overlapping shell walls. The color
of the shell of the diatoms is generally transparent. The cell wall of these
organisms is generally composed of cellulose. In this cellulosic cell wall,
the silica particles are embedded in many places. Due to this reason, the
cell wall appears to be made up of silica.

Nucleus of the Diatom:- Diploid nucleus is present in the diatom.

Pigments Present in the Diatoms:

Pigments Present in the Diatoms: The cell wall of diatoms consists of
chloroplasts. In the chloroplast of the diatoms, the pigments are present.
These pigments are chlorophyll a, chlorophyll c, and xanthophyll. This
xanthophyll is also known as fucoxanthin. Due to these pigments diatoms
appear golden in color.

Movement of the Diatoms:- Diatoms are immotile, because of the absence

of flagella in them. They generally float on the surface of the water with the
help of low molecular weight stored fats. The movement of some diatoms
is done with the help of the slimy secretion. This slimy secretion is an oily
material excreted by the diatoms. This provides the lubrication for the
movement of the diatoms. 
Mode of Nutrition in Diatoms:- The diatoms are autotrophic in nature.
The form of stored food in the diatoms are leucosin (chrysolaminarin)
and fats (oils).

The Shape of Diatoms:- The diatoms found in nature are of two types.
One is round in shape and the other is elongated. On the basis of
shape, diatoms can be classified into two types.

Types of Diatoms:- (i)Pennate Diatoms, (ii)Centric Diatoms.

 Types of Diatoms

Pennate Diatoms:- These types of diatoms are elongated in shape.

These diatoms can be divided bilaterally. Therefore, they have
bilateral symmetry. Pennate diatoms are motile in nature. They move
by gliding movement.

Centric Diatoms:These types of diatoms are round-circular in shape.

They possess radial symmetry. These forms of diatoms are non-
motile in nature.
Structure
of
Diatoms
 Some additional facts about Diatoms

The cell wall of the diatoms has silica in very large quantities. Due to
this reason, their cell wall is hard. The cell wall does not get
destroyed after their death so, at the bottom of the sea, very huge
rocks of dead diatoms are formed which are known as diatomite or
diatomaceous earth or kieselguhr.

Diatoms are the chief producers in the ocean.

Diatoms are known as golden algae or jewels of the sea.

Tests for extraction of Diatoms at post mortem

1. Acid Digestion Method (mostly used)

2. Enzymatic Digestion (mostly used)
3. Indirect digestion of materials
4. Ultrasonic Radiation (rarely use)
5. Strong Anionic Detergents (rarely use)
6. Membrane filtering method (not in use)
 Slide Prepration

1. Take a drop of the sample on a cover slip placed on the hot

plate at 450C.
2. Mount with DPX on a glass slide.
3. Microscopic examinations at 100X.
4. Different types of diatoms were observed under microscope.
 Expected Results

Positive:-
If the control sample and
postmortem sample has the same
algae structural (type, size, and
density) uniqueness then it is a
positive sign of antemortem
drowning at the site from which the
reference sample is collected.
Negative:-
1. Neither of the samples
(postmortem and reference
sample) has diatoms.
2. One sample has diatoms but
others don’t.
3. Both have diatoms but of
different structural.
 Forensic Plant Systematics
Plant Systematics is a branch of Forensic Botany that includes the
process of classification of plants into different classes and families
based on their different morphological and genetic characteristics.
Thus, forensic plant systematic as the name suggests is the application
of the knowledge of plant classification in solving crimes.
Plant systematics is a science that includes and encompasses
traditional taxonomy; however, its primary goal is to reconstruct the
evolutionary history of plant life. It divides plants into taxonomic
groups, using morphological, anatomical, embryological, chromosomal
and chemical data. However, the science differs from straight
taxonomy in that it expects the plants to evolve, and documents that
evolution. Determining phylogeny - the evolutionary history of a
particular group - is the primary goal of systematics.
 Forensic Ecology
Ecology is the term that is used to refer to the study of the
relationship between different plant and animal species in a particular
ecosystem. Thus, forensic ecology as the name suggests is the
application of the knowledge of this relationship between the plant
and animal species in a habitat to investigate whether the suspect
could be held guilty of the crime.
 Application of Forensic Botany
Forensic Palynology being the most intensively developed branch of forensic
botany has a very critical application in solving crimes. Pollens and spores are
considered excellent evidence because of their high resistance to any extreme
conditions and because they are very easily transferrable between objects
pertaining to their small size. Pollens can adhere to any type of surface and due
to their different shape and size can be easily identified and classified.
Successful identification of species of pollens would eventually help in the
determination of the place of occurrence of the crime since no two places would
be having the same pollen profile. Moreover, Forensic Palynology also helps in
the determination of the fact whether the corpse had been moved from one
place to another after death. Palynology also helps in determining the
authenticity of any particular document by analyzing the time of generation of
the document with the help of pollens present on its surface.
Diatoms are another useful evidence and what adds to their value as good
evidence is their occurrence throughout the year, a huge number of diatoms at a
place, knowledge of their environmental occurrence, and incredible resistance to
extreme conditions. Diatoms are mainly used to identify the cause, time, and place
of death, especially in cases of drowning. They help in determining whether the
death occurred due to drowning or the corpse was placed in the water body after
death. It does so with the help of the principle that if death has occurred due to
drowning, there would be asphyxiation resulting in rapid ingression of water through
the respiratory tract and then through the pulmonary alveoli, thus there would be
the presence of the diatoms in internal organs such as bone marrow and brain. But if
the body has been placed in the water after death, the presence of diatoms would be
seen only in the respiratory tract and not in any of the internal organs. Knowledge
about the diatom assemblage and the comparison of the structure of assemblage of
diatoms present on the suspected crime scene with that of the sample evidence
helps in identifying the actual scene of occurrence.
Plant macro remains are a powerful tool to link a body or other
evidence back to a primary crime scene as they can provide detailed
information about its previous ecological and geographic location.
However, plant macroremains are often poorly preserved and
difficult to identify, as diagnostic elements are seldom present within
the assemblage occurring on the scene. Plant fragments most likely to
be found are those exposed to the environment and resistant to
degradation. The bark of woody plants meets these requirements but
the possibility of its identification at species level from small
fragments is not known.
Forensic Dendrochronology is another emerging branch of forensic
botany that has great application in the determination of time since
death. Estimation of the number of growth rings in the stem of various
trees helps in determining the time of skeletonization of the corpse.

Another use of forensic dendrochronology is in the determination of

illegal logging. The government of various countries has banned the
logging of certain trees as well as certain forests. The regions of the
forests or trees from which the logs are obtained are determined with
the help of dendrochronology.
Forensic Ecology helps in identifying any concealed or buried corpse.
Whenever a corpse is concealed or buried in an ecosystem it causes
structural changes in the vegetation of that area for a long time which
can be easily identified. These changes help in identifying the site at
which the corpse has been concealed.

The accuracy of forensic identification of various species of plants is

majorly dependent on knowledge of all the above-mentioned branches
of forensic botany. Physical evidence, particularly Botanical evidence
should not be ignored or handled carelessly. Even a microscopic spore
may prove to be vital evidence in linking the crime scene, victim, and
criminal which in turn helps in solving the crime.
 Conclusion
Forensic Botany is a new and growing field. It still needs a lot of
improvements as even today, many criminal investigators, medical
practitioners, and judges are unaware of its application. This is due to
the little exposure to the field of botany.

The application of the knowledge of plants into legal matters has

grown constantly since the 1930s and is now one of the most
important branches of forensic science. But in many parts of the
world, the testimony of a forensic botanist is still not accepted.
To improve the acceptability of the testimony of forensic botanists in
the court of law, the expert needs to improve his/her knowledge and
skills and the authorities should take necessary action to increase the
awareness about the importance of forensic botany amongst people.

As advancement in the field of forensics is increasing, there is the

introduction of many new technologies in the branch of forensic
botany as well, such as the use of DNA analysis to identify the unique
traits of a particular plant species. This is a new approach but once
well-developed can be utilized to prove the innocence or guilt of the
suspect unambiguously.
 References
https://legaldesire.com/forensic-botany-and-its-applications/
https://www.azolifesciences.com
https://www.thoughtco.com/plant-systematics-419199
https://www.sciencedirect.com/journal/forensic-science-
international/special-issue/102X8SP2B00
https://byjus.com/neet/anatomy-of-root-stem-and-leaf/
https://www.vedantu.com for most of the basics
https://www.journalijdr.com/sites/default/files/issue-pdf/
https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00414-020-02456-0