Forensicscan be vital in indorse police and jury to reach accurate conclusion in complex cases where the facts are elusive . The potential of results to sway convictions or eliminate suspects means their correct coating is paramount , which is why the battlefield is now populate by experts who can look for for hint in places most people would n’t even opine to face .

One example of these bantam breadcrumb is diatoms , a group of microalgae found in water habitats across the planet . Dexterfans may recall that The Bay Harbour Butcher ’s boat placement was let on by diatom , and they have many practical app within the field of environmental forensics .

A case recently explored in BBC Three ’s new series , Body On The Beach : What hap To Annie ? , further demonstrates the possible diatoms have in revealing possible clue that may contradict the more obvious detail of adeath scene . To sympathise how , and what else diatom can learn us aboutdead body , we spoke to forensic biologistDr Kirstie Scottwho specialize in diatom .

“ Diatoms are eucaryotic microscopic algae , ” Scott told IFLScience . “ When you ’re around any variety of body of water , or any variety of dampish surface , like soils , or tree diagram bark , more often than not , there ’ll be these microscopic residential district of alga growing and prevail those environments . [ … ] They can be used to name dissimilar instance of death , or different incidents that might have train place during criminal offence event . ”

Scott was n’t call for in the casing of Annie Börjesson , a 30 - year - former from Sweden who lived in Edinburgh until her organic structure was found on Prestwick Beach – but in the new series , she explains how the presence of diatoms in her bone marrow raises interesting motion about some of the facts of the sheath .

As the serial publication demonstrate , the grow field of forensics can conduce towards revealing new insights into cold cases even decades after the fact .

“ There are some critical young details about Annie ’s death which emerged as a result of this series , ” said journalist and series leadHazel Martin to the BBC . “ We have compiled a document of 11 point that we think are deserving re - face at , which has now been state to the Scottish Fatalities Unit ( the specialized unit creditworthy for look into deaths in Scotland ) . ”

“ Some of the information we included is new - for exercise , the UK ’s take forensic pathologist , Dr Stuart Hamilton , suggested that marks on Annie ’s physical structure looked like they might be bruising . These marks had not been include in the post - mortem composition at the time . ”

dead body on the Beach : What come about to Annie?will airwave on BBC Scotland andBBC iPlayer from Tuesday , July 4 , and BBC Three from Wednesday , July 5 .