This fly is notable for its economic effect as a myiasis pest of livestock and its antibiotic benefits in maggot therapy.

Also of interest is P. terraenovae’s importance in forensic investigations: because of their temperature-dependent development and their prominent presence on corpses, the larvae of this species are useful in minimum post-mortem interval (mPMI) determination.

P. terraenovae is differentiated from P. atriceps by its flat face, plumose arista, and by up to 2 additional pairs of setae along the margin of the scutellum.

The bison skull, estimated to date from the late Eemian period, was excavated from the site of a new sluice for the Brussels-Rupel Canal in Zemst, Belgium.

[8] Being of the order Diptera, Protophormia terraenovae is holometabolous in its development, meaning it experiences dramatic changes from immature to adult.

As eggs hatch into the first larval stage, P. terraenovae begins feeding and increases in size, limited by its chitinous outer cuticle.

During the pupal stage, the outer cuticle hardens and tans into a dark brown color, gradually darkening with age.

The duration of the pupal stage is relatively long compared to the rest of development, inactively occupying 43% of P. terraenovae’s total cycle.

The fly is common in cool regions and, being "the most cold tolerant of all calliphorid species," can withstand extreme temperatures.

As a species of the blowfly family Calliphoridae, Protophormia terraenovae causes economically important myiasis in livestock and, occasionally, in humans.

[17] Myiasis due to Protophormia terraenovae has been reported in both wild and domestic animals, but it most commonly affects livestock.

[19] In particular, Protophormia terraenovae causes facultative, cutaneous myiasis of cattle, sheep and reindeer in the northern Holarctic region.

Blowfly bred at these locations cause considerable local nuisance and may spread disease to both humans and animals by contaminating meat and foodstuffs.

Because they make up the first wave of fauna to colonize a corpse, blowflies are among the most accurate forensic indicators of time elapsed since death, technically referred to as the post-mortem interval (PMI).

Because the development of these flies is dependent on temperature, entomologists can use past weather data to estimate the ages of larvae and even pupae discovered on a corpse.

[11] When post-feeding larvae venture away from the body to pupate, as is common for most blowflies, displacement behavior becomes the determining factor of age.

Because puparial cases decay at an extremely slow rate and can be recovered years after the death of an individual, they can become very important to the examination of a corpse.

An eighteen-month-long search of several acres of farmland and property in British Columbia resulted in the discovery of trace DNA evidence linked to twenty-six missing women.

Forensic entomologists determined developmental rates based on locally collected specimens of P. terraenovae, and with this information, concluded that both women had been exposed for weeks prior to being frozen.

The pig farmer and co-owner of the grounds, Robert “Willie” Pickton, was charged with the murders of all twenty-six women.

[23] Investigation of the species is still ongoing: specifically, researchers are examining PMI and ADH/ADD for P. terraenovae, ecdysteroid levels and molting, and adult diapause with reactions to certain temperatures.

Other research based on the haemolymph circulation rate suggests that sensory-induced changes can result in a series of gustatory stimulations that shorten the cardiac cycle of P. terraenovae.