The skeletal remains of a woman found nearly 44 years ago have been identified as those of Clara Birdlong – and investigators believe she was a victim of the most prolific serial killer in US history.

Hunters found the woman’s remains in December 1977 in the small community of Escatawpa in coastal Jackson County, Mississippi.

A post mortem found the woman, who had a distinctive gold tooth, had been dead about three or four months before her remains were found.

“Although he is now deceased, Samuel Little is considered a prime suspect in the death of Clara Birdlong,” a statement from the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office said.

“Her cause of death is undetermined.”

Little died in December in California, where he was serving a life sentence for multiple counts of murder.

He confessed to killing 93 people between 1970 and 2005 with most of the slayings taking place in Florida and southern California.

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Sheriff Mike Ezell said Little confessed in 2018 to several killings in south-eastern US, including that of “Escatawpa Jane Doe” – the name used by officers because of where the remains were found.

In January, detectives began working with Texas-based DNA research company Othram to create a family tree for Jane Doe.

Othram quickly identified a distant cousin of the victim who put them in touch with her 93-year-old grandmother, who was originally from Leflore County.

She said her cousin, Clara Birdlong, who was born in 1933, went missing in the 1970s.

Another distant cousin said Ms Birdlong was a small woman who had a gold front tooth and wore a wig.

Investigators then spoke to a woman in Leflore County who said Ms Birdlong left in the 1970s with a man who claimed he was heading to Florida. She was never heard from again.

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