Biological and Physical Anthropology Commons^™

Applicability Of Cementochronology To Estimate Season-Of-Death In Humans: Insights From Modern Documented Collections, Olga Ibarra-Sanchez

Theses and Dissertations

Dental cementum is characterized by lifelong deposition of alternating opaque annuli in fall/winter and translucent bands in spring/summer. This study aims to test the applicability of cementochronology to estimate season-of-death, by observing the properties of the last layer, with direct implications for forensic anthropology and bioarchaeology. The sample includes canine teeth from 146 adults (84 males, 62 females), age-at-death ranging from 20-97 years (mean=61.7 years, SD=18.6 years), from two contemporary skeletal collections. Of these individuals, 78 (53.4%) died in spring/summer and 68 (46.6%) died in fall/winter. Overall accuracy was low at 64.4% (94/146). Accuracy was higher for spring/summer deaths 100.0% …

Individual, Social, And Environmental Factors Associated With Patterns Of Parasitic Infection In Capuchin Monkeys (Cebus Imitator), Megan C. Henriquez

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

Parasites, and the infectious diseases they carry, are thought to have significantly impacted our evolutionary trajectory for millennia. Exploring how parasites are acquired and transmitted by their hosts in wild, natural populations is integral to understanding how similar processes may have shaped host-parasite co-evolutionary relationships over time. However, parasitological studies in humans and in non-human primates have produced inconsistent results, highlighting the dynamic, nuanced, and unique relationships individual parasites have with their hosts. These relationships are largely regulated by variation in factors at host, social, and environmental levels. Characteristics unique to the host (e.g., age and sex), factors pertaining to …

Functional Morphology Of The Primate Knee And Its Implications For Hominin Bipedal Mechanics, Catherine K. Miller

Dartmouth College Ph.D Dissertations

Bipedal locomotion is central to the human condition, having shaped our evolutionary trajectory since its early emergence in the hominin lineage. Despite its importance, key questions remain about its origins and evolutionary trajectory. While many studies have focused on locomotor-related anatomies, comparatively less attention has been paid to the knee joint – a structure critical to the primate locomotor repertoire. This dissertation aims to clarify the form-function relationship of the knee in extant primates to better infer the locomotor behaviors of Miocene hominoids and Plio-Pleistocene hominins. To address these questions, this research employs a multifaceted analytical approach, integrating linear measurements, …

Comparative Semiotic Analysis Of Non-Verbal Communication: Apis Mellifera Waggle Dance And Human Kinesic Signaling Systems, Nishtha Tikalal

Honors Undergraduate Theses

There are many parallels between two seemingly disparate forms of non-verbal communication: the waggle dance of Apis mellifera (honeybees) and human kinesic signaling systems. Through a comparative semiotic analysis, this research aims to conduct a comparative semiotic analysis, investigating structural and functional similarities between these communication methods, challenging anthropocentric assumptions about meaning making in the natural world. This research employs a meta-synthesis approach, drawn from a methodological literature review to examine historical representations of bee-human relationships, semiotics of non-verbal communication, and the specific mechanisms of the waggle dance and human kinesics. This methodology involves systematic categorization and analysis of extracted …

Sex Differences In The Diets Of Forest-Dwelling Baboons (Papio Anubis), Kara Hartunian

Theses and Dissertations

The ability to eat and switch between many food sources is an adaptative feeding strategy utilized for meeting nutritional needs across different environments, seasons, and physiological conditions. Baboons (genus Papio) excel at both dietary flexibility and foraging selectively, and consequently have one of the most widespread geographic distributions in the Order. To further expand to our understanding of baboon feeding ecology, I analyzed foraging activity and the nutritional characteristics of the diets of the relatively understudied rainforest baboons (Papio anubis) living in Kibale National Park, Uganda. I also investigated if there are differences in food type choice …

Seed Dispersal By Martu Peoples Promotes The Distribution Of Native Plants In Arid Australia, Rebecca Bliege Bird, Douglas Bird, Christopher T. Martine, Chloe Mcguire, Leanne Greenwood, Desmond Taylor, Tanisha M. Williams, Peter M. Veth

Faculty Journal Articles

Commensal relationships between wild plants and their dispersers play a key ecological and evolutionary role in community structure and function. While non-human dispersers are often considered critical to plant recruitment, human dispersers have received much less attention, especially when it comes to non-domesticated plants. Australia, as a continent historically characterized by economies reliant on non-domesticated plants, is thus a key system for exploring the ecological role of people as seed dispersers in the absence of agriculture. Here, we utilize a controlled observation research design, employing ecological surveys and ethnographic observations to examine how seed dispersal and landscape burning by Martu …

Bilateral Asymmetry In The First Metacarpal: The Influence Of Handedness In Humans And Non-Human Primates, Lucyna A. Bowland

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Muscle attachment sites (entheses) are often used to infer soft tissue anatomy and reconstruct behaviors within skeletal populations, but there remains a significant debate about whether and to what degree muscle use is accurately reflected in bony morphology. One of the most difficult problems in establishing the relationship between variation in muscle use and entheseal development is the inability to exclude a variety of external factors thought to influence enthesis development, including age, sex, body mass, and activity patterns. One way around this is to take advantage of the fact that humans are handed (preferentially using one hand over another, …

Recovering Ancient Dna Using The Polymerase Chain Reaction, Rose Jennings

Undergraduate Research Symposium

Investigations into aDNA offer a window into the past that modern DNA and paleontological studies alone cannot provide and help address the evolution and connections between hominids, domestication timelines, the analysis of populations over time, and general diversity. Progress in aDNA research has been inherently technology-driven, with modern molecular biology methods, such as the inventions of Polymerase Chain Reaction (PCR) and Next Generation Sequencing (NGS), substantially increasing the analysis possibilities of aDNA. My research this semester has taken me along two parallel paths of investigation: literary research into aDNA and practical exposure to the laboratory techniques used in its analysis. …

Repatriation And A Biological Profile Of Indigenous Remains Of West Texas, Haley P. Rebardi

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

The Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Act (NAGPRA) was created in response to the injustice, mishandling, looting, and trafficking of Native American remains and cultural artifacts. However, even with the latest amendment in December of 2023, there are still gray areas in the context and language. Notably, an issue with NAGPRA is the act only includes institutions and organizations that receive and are supported by Federal funding. Consequently, the act does not cover private collections. The main concern in these contexts is the lack of communication, awareness, and/or permission with and from descendant tribes or potential descendants when it …

Resolving Commingling, Restoring Identity: An Interdisciplinary Collaboration And Ethical Study Of Individuals From A Human Skeletal Teaching Collection, Morgann L. Lucas, Morgan J. Elmore, Christine Chen, Carolann Cockerill, Mekenzie Davis, Vivian N. Pham, Matthew Kolmann, Linda Fuselier, Kathryn E. Marklein

The Cardinal Edge

In Fall 2022, human skeletal remains were discovered in the Department of Biology’s Comparative Vertebrate Anatomy Laboratory. No documentation about the acquisition or curation history was found. With no current protocols for repatriating individuals in university skeletal teaching collections, an interdisciplinary research team analyzed the skeletal remains to resolve to commingle and identify the people. Using standardized methods in forensic anthropology, we estimated the minimum number of individuals represented through taphonomic, demographic, paleopathological, and morphological variables and variation. Results indicated, minimally, 36 to 56 individuals represented by 250 bones. Of these individuals, 12 were estimated as probable female, 16 as …

Functional Morphology Of The Platyrrhine Humerus And Talus: Implications For Inferring Locomotor Behavior In Extinct Primates, Liam Michael Zachary

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Platyrrhines are a diverse radiation of primates that exhibit a range of locomotor adaptations. The relationships between extant primate locomotor behavior and variation in postcranial morphology are often used to make functional interpretations of skeletal anatomy in extinct primates. However, a comparative baseline of form-function relationships in the extant platyrrhine postcranium is lacking compared to other primates, which limits understanding of platyrrhine locomotor evolution. The humerus and talus are two of the best represented skeletal elements in the platyrrhine fossil record and are informative of locomotor behavior. Therefore, quantification of morphological variation in extant platyrrhine tali and humeri can provide …

Understanding The Environmental And Genetic Influence On Fluctuating Asymmetry And Developmental Instability In Primates, Ashly N. Romero

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation explored the impact of environmental factors on the development and perpetuation of fluctuating asymmetry (FA) and sought to understand the role evolution may play in the FA exhibited in two primate populations: the free-ranging Cayo Santiago rhesus macaques (Macaca mulatta) and the Southwest National Primate Research Center olive baboons (Papio hamadryas anubis). Demographic, ontogenetic, secular, external, and genetic factors were examined. Specifically, this dissertation investigated FA over all ontogenetic stages, across decades, between sexes, in association with ecological catastrophes, and with tooth pathology to try and tease apart factors that may influence FA and developmental instability. This dissertation …

Does The Genome Of A Putatively Specialist Moth (Schinia Gracilenta) Contain A Signal Of The Indigenous Cultivation Of Its Host Plant (Iva Annua), Wren Renquist

2023 Midwest Ecology & Evolution Conference

When one species depends on one another for survival, they may have shared demographic histories. Further, when symbionts have shorter life spans, their rate of evolution may be quicker than that of their hosts. For this reason, detecting a recent demographic signal in a symbiont’s genome may often be easier than directly studying the host.

Here I study the slender flower moth (Schinia gracilenta) and its host plant, sumpweed (Iva annua). Sumpweed is thought to have been cultivated in North American ca. 5000 BC - AD 1700 and its range may have been expanded during this time. I collected S. …

Cleome Serrulata, Rocky Mountain Beeweed, Uses By Native Americans, Marielle Gomez, John Ubelaker

Research

This paper examines the use of beeweed (Cleome serrulata), a native annual commonly called Rocky Mountain beeplant, as a traditional dye and paint source for pottery in Northern New Mexico.

Automated Morphological Phenotyping Using Learned Shape Descriptors And Functional Maps: A Novel Approach To Geometric Morphometrics, Oshane O. Thomas, Hongyu Shen, Ryan L. Raaum, William E. H. Harcourt-Smith, John D. Polk, Mark Hasegawa-Johnson

Publications and Research

The methods of geometric morphometrics are commonly used to quantify morphology in a broad range of biological sciences. The application of these methods to large datasets is constrained by manual landmark placement limiting the number of landmarks and introducing observer bias. To move the field forward, we need to automate morphological phenotyping in ways that capture comprehensive representations of morphological variation with minimal observer bias. Here, we present Morphological Variation Quantifier (morphVQ), a shape analysis pipeline for quantifying, analyzing, and exploring shape variation in the functional domain. morphVQ uses descriptor learning to estimate the functional correspondence between whole triangular meshes …

Alfred Russel Wallace Notes 24. Wallace At 200: Potential Subjects For Student Theses, Charles H. Smith

Faculty/Staff Personal Papers

The bicentennial of Alfred Russel Wallace’s birth in 2023 will likely produce a wide array of reviews of his life and work; here, we pause for a short look at some Wallace-related questions that might be adapted for student theses and dissertations. Some of the subjects treated fall in with established lines of research, while others are suggested by other Wallace interests or activities that have not been much explored.

Quantification Of Dental Fissures Through Occlusal Topography Analysis, Duru Erkan

Biological Sciences Undergraduate Honors Theses

Narrow, deep, and elaborate dental fissures are widely believed to increase the predisposition of enamel to develop carious lesions as these surfaces are thought to be ideal for cariogenic bacteria to adhere to. Therefore, dentists prescribe sealants as a preventative measure for patients with such fissures to avoid tooth decay. Yet to date, there is no objective data supporting the notion that fissure morphology actually affects caries susceptibility, nor is there a quantifiable, clinically practical method to characterize fissure patterns expected to increase risk of caries disease.

In this study, three new methods to quantitatively characterize fissure pattern in mandibular …

Laryngeal Vocals In Old World Locals: Air Sacs Usage In Bonobos, Chelsea Trenbeath

Symposium of Student Scholars

Except for humans, extant great apes have evolutionarily conserved lateral ventricular air sacs extending from laryngeal saccules. Humans are the only species of Hominidae that lack this anatomical feature attached to the primary vocal apparatus. As we are the only species that produces spoken language, this association has led to hypothesis that the loss of lateral ventricular air sacs was necessary for the evolution of spoken language. However, why these sacs are conserved in all other hominids remains unclear. Computer modeling has indicated that air sacs may increase resonance properties, but there are no data from great apes indicating which …

The Evolution Of Sex Differences In Mandrills (Mandrillus Sphinx): Micro- And Macroevolution, Jerred Klint Schafer

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Primates show diverse patterns of adaptive color and body size dimorphism produced by inter- and intrasexual selection. However, the specific microevolutionary processes that produce variation in secondary sexual characteristics remain largely unexplored in primates. Furthermore, sexual conflict theory predicts that female and male secondary sexual traits can coevolve in an antagonistic manner and promote speciation. This dissertation explores the microevolution of secondary sexual characteristics in mandrills (Mandrillus sphinx) and the macroevolution of these characters in anthropoid primates. I address the microevolution of mandrill facial coloration and body mass by estimating the heritability, phenotypic selection, and genetic evolution of these traits …

Detecting Bacterial Species From Ancient Human Skeletal Samples, Ariel Owens, Daisy Mcgrath, Tsai-Tien Tseng

Symposium of Student Scholars

This paleopathological study aims to identify Mycobacterium tuberculosis complex (MTBC), Mycobacterium avium complex (MAC) and other Mycobacterium species in silico from skeletal samples that belonged to 28 Polish individuals in the Neolithic period under PRJNA422903 from the Sequence Read Archive (SRA). After next-generation sequencing (NGS), bioinformatics methods are heavily relied upon for identification of pathogens from complex samples. We implemented a bioinformatics pipeline, with custom-built databases, utilizing the following software tools: Trim Galore! and Kraken2. After adapter trimming, Kraken2 was used for taxonomic classifications. We have found that Mycobacterium is present in all 28 individuals. The average percentage of MAC …

Intergenerational Embodiment Of Stress : How The Broader Sociocultural Environment Can Shape Child Growth And Development, Elizabeth A. Holdsworth

Legacy Theses & Dissertations (2009 - 2024)

Childhood growth has been a means of identifying systemic, material inequalities within populations. The plasticity of growth is responsive to multiple environmental factors, most notably adequate nutrition, but also psychosocial stress. Psychosocial stress can be a function of the social and political economic ecology, reinforcing power hierarchies within societies. This dissertation proposes that childhood growth can also reflect inequality in the distribution of psychosocial stress exposure through mothers’ feelings of a chronically stressful environment conveyed through maternal-infant interactions.

The Genetic Links Between Archaic And Modern Humans, Maria J. Orellana Rosales

Thinking Matters Symposium

Our modern physiology is the mixture of many archaic humans that once roamed our planet. The evidence of these archaic humans is still present in our DNA. This poster reviews how our understanding of ancient human genetics has drastically changed due to advances in molecular genetics. Neanderthal and Denisovan remains have been sequenced for nuclear and mitochondrial DNA. Neanderthal and Denisovan genetic ancestry have been identified by genomic studies in modern human populations across Eurasia and Pacific Island regions. Studies have shown a gene flow of 4±1% from Neanderthals to present-day Eurasians. Whereas, Papuan and Melanesian individuals share 4±0.7% more …

Assessing Methods For Estimating Biological Sex From Subadult Skeletal Elements, Dorota Zabnicka

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

While methods for estimating the sex of adult skeletons are relatively accurate, these methods are often inconclusive when applied to subadults (non-adults), especially when many secondary sexual characteristics have not fully developed. Furthermore, existing methods for subadults are often tested on samples with relatively homogenous ancestries, calling into question their reliability in more diverse populations. This thesis reviewed techniques for estimating sex in subadult skeletal remains, and the most promising methods were retested on individuals of known sex between ages 3 and 17 years (n=39, 14 males, 25 females) from the Hamann-Todd Osteological Collection. Data collection included measurements of the …

Group Differences In Mother-Infant Macaca Fascicularis Behavior, Parasite Load, And Body Condition Within An Anthropogenically Altered Forest, Elizabeth M.C. Coggeshall

All Master's Theses

This study aimed to establish preliminary health and behavioral data, as well as understand group variation for a large population of Macaca fascicularis individuals within an anthropogenically altered monkey forest. A parasitic analysis of 40 mother and infant individuals showed that M. fascicularis carried 13 different parasitic taxa, and that there was parasitic variation between groups. Body condition scores were determined using a newly created and adapted body condition scale from 146 sampled mother macaques. Body condition scores were significantly different between groups, specifically the pond group when compared to the three other groups. Mother-infant behavioral differences were seen between …

Microdamage As A Bone Quality Component: Practical Guidelines For The Two‐Dimensional Analysis Of Linear Microcracks In Human Cortical Bone, Victoria M. Dominguez, Amanda M. Agnew

Publications and Research

Microdamage is a component of bone quality believed to play an integral role in bone health. However, comparability between existing studies is fraught with issues due to highly variable methods of sample preparation and poorly defined quantification criteria. To address these issues, this article has two aims. First, detailed methods for preparation and analysis of linear microcracks in human ribs, specifically addressing troubleshooting issues cited in previous studies, are laid out. Second, new, partially validated criteria are proposed in an effort to reduce subjective differences in microcrack counts and measures, ensuring more comparable results between studies. Revised definitions based on …

Effects Of Habitat Disturbance On The Teeth Of Propithecus Diadema In The Forests Of Tsinjoarivo, Madagascar: Implications For Species Viability And Conservation, Katie Susann Heffernan

Graduate Research Theses & Dissertations

The accelerated transformation of Madagascar’s ecosystems is a direct result of habitat destruction which has devastating consequences for the viability of the island’s animals. This dissertation focuses on the critically endangered diademed sifaka, Propithecus diadema, living in the rainforests of Tsinjoarivo, Madagascar. Tsinjoarivo has been heavily impacted by slash and burn agriculture and transformed into isolated forest fragments. Previous research by Irwin and colleagues has demonstrated that the diet and group dynamics of Propithecus diadema differ between continuous and degraded forests, but whether fragmented landscapes provide tougher foods and lead to behavioral changes through increased tooth wear has not been …

Comparison Of Two Ancient Dna Extraction Protocols For Skeletal Remains From Tropical Environments, Maria A. Nieves-Colon, Andrew T. Ozga, William J. Pestle, Andrea Cucina, Vera Tiesler, Travis W. Stanton, Anne C. Stone

Biology Faculty Articles

Objectives

The tropics harbor a large part of the world's biodiversity and have a long history of human habitation. However, paleogenomics research in these climates has been constrained so far by poor ancient DNA yields. Here we compare the performance of two DNA extraction methods on ancient samples of teeth and petrous portions excavated from tropical and semi‐tropical sites in Tanzania, Mexico, and Puerto Rico (N = 12).

Materials and Methods

All samples were extracted twice, built into double‐stranded sequencing libraries, and shotgun sequenced on the Illumina HiSeq 2500. The first extraction protocol, Method D, was previously designed for …

Costs Of Group Locomotion: How Infant-Carrying And Group Members Mediate Walking Speed Decisions In North American And East African Populations, Leah M. Bouterse

Honors Projects

A major portion of humans’ activity-based energy expenditure is taken up by locomotion, particularly walking. Humans can offset the energetic expenditure of walking in numerous ways, both evolutionary (such as changes in body shape) and culturally. Behaviorally, people can choose to walk in a variety of ways, including alone or with a group, carrying loads, and walking quickly or more slowly. All of these behaviors have energetic outcomes and as such can be important windows into how populations and groups adjust to different constraints. While sex differences in speed of paired walkers have been established by others, the dynamics of …

Successful Enrichment And Recovery Of Whole Mitochondrial Genomes From Ancient Human Dental Calculus, Andrew T. Ozga, Maria A. Nieves-Colon, Tanvi P. Honap, Krithivasan Sankaranarayanan, Courtney A. Hofman, George R. Milner, Cecil M. Lewis Jr., Anne C. Stone, Christina Warinner

Biology Faculty Articles

Objectives

Archaeological dental calculus is a rich source of host‐associated biomolecules. Importantly, however, dental calculus is more accurately described as a calcified microbial biofilm than a host tissue. As such, concerns regarding destructive analysis of human remains may not apply as strongly to dental calculus, opening the possibility of obtaining human health and ancestry information from dental calculus in cases where destructive analysis of conventional skeletal remains is not permitted. Here we investigate the preservation of human mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) in archaeological dental calculus and its potential for full mitochondrial genome (mitogenome) reconstruction in maternal lineage ancestry analysis.

Materials and …

Homo Heidelbergensis: The Tool To Our Success, Alexander Burkard

AUCTUS: The Journal of Undergraduate Research and Creative Scholarship

Homo heidelbergensis, a physiological variant of the species Homo sapien, is an extinct species that existed in both Europe and parts of Asia from 700,000 years ago to roughly 300,000 years ago (carbon dating). This “subspecies” of Homo sapiens, as it is formally classified, is a direct ancestor of anatomically modern humans, and is understood to have many of the same physiological characteristics as those of anatomically modern humans while still expressing many of the same physiological attributes of Homo erectus, an earlier human ancestor. Since Homo heidelbergensis represents attributes of both species, it has therefore earned the classification as …