Biological and Physical Anthropology Commons^™

Ka Here Tāngata:1 Mātauranga And Te Ao Māori In Biocultural Kākāpō (Strigops Habroptilus) Conservation Approaches, Sophie Perfetto

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This master's thesis examines conservation as a form of living cultural heritage practice through the co-management of kākāpō (Strigops habroptilus), a critically endangered parrot and taonga species in Aotearoa New Zealand. Situated within ongoing histories of colonial dispossession and Western frameworks of land and species management, contemporary kākāpō conservation is shaped through the partnership between the Department of Conservation’s Kākāpō Recovery Programme and Ngāi Tahu. Drawing on semi-structured interviews collected during fieldwork from July to August 2025, this study examines how institutional partnerships structure decision-making, authority, and responsibility in contemporary conservation governance. Findings demonstrate that Māori knowledge systems …

The Forensic Implications Of Hydrochloric Acid (Hcl) Exposure On Dna Preservation In Human Teeth, Shaelyn Lee Zimmerman

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Identity is a human right, and forensic anthropological methods are often aimed at returning identity to decedents. Three main pathways are used for the identification of human remains: fingerprints, dental records, and DNA analysis. Identification efforts may be hindered when perpetrators attempt to obscure the victim’s identity. In cases where corrosive substances, such as hydrochloric acid (HCl) are used, dental comparison and fingerprinting often fail and genetic analysis becomes the best chance of achieving personal identification.

Previous studies have shown teeth are an excellent source of DNA. Large, multi-rooted teeth, such as molars, are often preferred because they contain the …

Dental Microwear And Diets Of Late Miocene Primates From Rudabánya, Hungary, Peter S. Ungar, Anna K. Wilcox, David R. Begun

School of Dentistry Faculty Publications

Objectives: This study focuses on a dental microwear texture analysis of European pliopithecids and dryopithecins from the Miocene primate site of Rudabánya, Hungary. The goal is to determine whether these taxa, found in part together in the same deposits, differed in their food preferences, or at least consumed, on a daily basis, in a manner that might have facilitated sympatry. Materials and Methods: Here we report on a molar surface texture analysis of all available fossil primates from Rudabánya that preserve antemortem microwear. This includes both Anapithecus hernyaki (n = 14) and Rudapithecus hungaricus (n = 5, including one from …

Primates From Senèze, Eric Delson

Publications and Research

Senèze has yielded two primate fossils, neither from the recent field work. A partial ulna can be identified as cf. Macaca sylvanus. A nearly complete female skull is the holotype of Dolichopithecus arvernensis Depéret, 1928, now included in Paradolichopithecus. Emended and differential diagnoses are provided for this genus and species for the first time, and the Senèze skull is described and briefly compared to those of other species of the genus. Dental and cranial measurements are provided, along with comparative data. The macaque and Paradolichopithecus are moderately to highly terrestrial, respectively, and they suggest a woodland to more open …

Fire History, Ecological History, And Historical Human-Environment Interactions In The Northern Great Plains, James Victor Benes

Dissertations and Doctoral Documents, University of Nebraska-Lincoln, 2023–

This dissertation explores the spatiotemporal signatures of fire in North American grassland ecosystems. In three chapters, I explore different aspects of fire history in the northern Great Plains. Chapter 1 is an introduction. Chapter 2 focuses on the Euro-American Settlement Period (ca. 1850–1950 C.E.). Fire histories from six different lakes in the Nebraska Sandhills are compared with two periods of historic drought and the establishment of United States Post Offices. Five of the six records show increased levels of biomass burning during the initial phases of Euro-American Settlement. Chapter 3 is a long-term (ca. 15,000 years), high-resolution fire history and …

Role Of C4 Resources In Isotopic Variability In Diet Among Children From Kellis 2 Cemetery, Dakhleh Oasis, Egypt, Faith R. Hendrix

Honors Undergraduate Theses

Using stable carbon isotope analysis, this study investigates dietary diversity in children buried at the Kellis 2 Cemetery (c. AD 50–450) in Egypt's Dakhleh Oasis. From the analysis of δ¹³C isotope values in hair keratin and bone collagen, the study reconstructs short-term and long-term dietary signals in juvenile and adult subjects. The aim is to clarify the role of C₄ plants—particularly millet—in weaning and childhood diets in a Romano-Christian Egyptian village context. A total of 631 segmented hair and 54 bone collagen samples were analyzed from 127 juveniles and 97 adults. Juvenile individuals (i.e., under 15 years biological age) showed …

Exploring The Evolution Of Altruistic Punishment Using A Pde Model For Multilevel Selection, Daniel Cooney

Biology and Medicine Through Mathematics Conference

No abstract provided.

A Review Of Theropithecus Oswaldi With The Proposal Of A New Subspecies, Dagmawit Abebe Getahun, Eric Delson, Chalachew Mesfin Seyoum

Publications and Research

Theropithecus oswaldi darti, as currently understood, is the oldest Theropithecus taxon in the fossil record and the earliest subspecies in the Theropithecus oswaldi lineage. Theropithecus oswaldi darti is typified at the site of Makapansgat in South Africa, and a similar form (T. o. cf. darti) is usually recognized at Hadar, Dikika, some Middle Awash localities, and Woranso-Mille in Ethiopia. This taxon is also tentatively believed to occur in Kenya at Kanam and Koobi Fora and in Member C of the Shungura Formation in Ethiopia. While there is a general consensus that the East African ‘darti’ specimens are …

Meta-Analysis Of Scent Detection Canines And Potential Factors Influencing Their Success Rates, Molly Marie Jaskinia

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Objective: This is a meta-analysis focused on the success rates of scent detection canines and potential factors that could influence their accuracy. A series of statistical analyses were conducted to determine if certain demographic factors, such as the dog’s gender, age, and breed, have an effect on a scent dog’s accuracy during a search. Or if more circumstantial factors, like the dog’s level of experience in scent work, the type of target scent, and their handler’s awareness of the target’s location, affect the outcome of the search.

Materials and Methods: A dataset was created from 37 different articles consisting of …

Reconstructing Bison And Mammoth Migration During The Late Pleistocene And Early Holocene Of Central Texas Using Strontium Isotopes, Joshua John Porter

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

During the Late Pleistocene (LP; past 130,000 years), over two-thirds of large mammal (>45kg) species went extinct globally. While the role of humans is hotly debated, the effect of these extinctions is growing clearer; the extinctions resulted in widespread and lasting faunal community reorganization. However, the impact of these extinctions on dietary and migratory behavior within faunal communities is unknown. Our study examines the impact of the megafaunal extinctions on the dietary and migratory behavior of surviving Bison individuals in Texas using carbon, oxygen, and strontium isotopes. Strontium isotopes are incorporated into mammalian enamel during their tooth development and …

The Naming Of Homo Bodoensis By Roksandic And Colleagues Does Not Resolve Issues Surrounding Middle Pleistocene Human Evolution, Eric Delson, Chris Stringer

Publications and Research

Roksandic et al. (2022) proposed the new species name Homo bodoensis as a replacement name for Homo rhodesiensis Woodward, 1921, because they felt it was poorly and variably defined and was linked to sociopolitical baggage. However, the International Code of Zoological Nomenclature includes regulations on how and when such name changes are allowed, and Roksandic et al.'s arguments meet none of these requirements. It is not permitted to change a name solely because of variable (or erroneous) later use once it has been originally defined correctly, nor can a name be modified because it is offensive to one or more …

Investigating Depth Estimation To Archaeological Magnetic Source Bodies, Jeremy G. Menzer

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Magnetometry is the most widely applied archaeo-geophysical technique. Current practice standards employ the technique to map only in a two-dimensional plan view fashion, but in deep geologic studies depth estimators are routinely applied to magnetic datasets. These estimators provide three-dimensional information to magnetic source-bodies. There are many different depth estimators employed in geologic study that all require various degrees of processing complexity. This study investigates two mathematically simple techniques, half-width rules and multi-height methods. Half-width rules are likely the oldest depth estimators within the field while multi-height techniques are but a minor footnote in the literature. The applicability of these …

Case 3847 – Simopithecus Oswaldi Andrews, 1916 (Currently Theropithecus Oswaldi; Mammalia, Primates, Cercopithecidae), Proposed Conservation By Reversal Of Precedence With Cynocephalus Atlanticus Thomas, 1884., Eric Delson, David M. Alba, Stephen R. Frost, Dagmawit Abebe Getahun, Christopher C. Gilbert

Publications and Research

The purpose of this application, under Articles 23.9.3 and 81.1 of the Code, is to conserve the usage of the species-group name Simopithecus oswaldi Andrews, 1916 by giving it precedence over its senior subjective synonym Cynocephalus atlanticus Thomas, 1884. Theropithecus is a common to dominant member of the extinct primate community across Africa after 4 million years ago (Jablonski & Frost, 2010) and often co-occurred with extinct humans (Hominini); fossils are also known rarely across Eurasia (Roberts et al., 2014). Most fossil samples are currently included in Theropithecus oswaldi (Andrews, 1916), which is often divided into chrono-geographic subspecies. Cynocephalus atlanticus …

African Land Mammal Ages, John Van Couvering, Eric Delson

Publications and Research

We define 17 African land mammal ages, or AFLMAs, covering the Cenozoic record of the Afro-arabian continent, the planet’s second largest land mass. While fossiliferous deposits are absent on the eroded plateau of the continent’s interior, almost 800 fossil genera from over 350 locations have now been identified in coastal deposits, karst caves, and in the Neogene rift valleys. Given a well-developed geochronologic framework, together with continuing revision to the fossil record—both stimulated by the story of human evolution in Africa—and also to compensate for the variation in fossil ecosystems across such great distances, the AFLMAs are biochronological units defined …

From The Human To The Planetary: Speculative Futures Of Care, Miriam Ticktin

Publications and Research

This is largely a theoretical, speculative essay that takes on the question of what ‘care’ looks like at a moment when climate change is increasingly taking center stage in public and political discussions. Starting with two new practices, namely, humanitarian care for nonhumans and One Health collaborations, I seek to determine what forms of political care can incorporate the well-being of future generations and future iterations of the earth. After an exploration of One Health as an approach to planetary care, I ask what its parts enable us to think, despite its limitations; I focus on the new human-nonhuman assemblages …

Oldowan Tool Behaviors Through Time On The Homa Peninsula, Kenya, Emma M. Finestone

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

The adaptive significance of tool use to genus Homo is a central theme in human origins. However, what we know from the early Oldowan sites suggests that persistent technology may have begun as an opportunistic behavior with minimal investment, rather than a habitual and widespread adaptive revolution. This dissertation seeks to investigate investment in Oldowan tool production on the Homa Peninsula, Kenya, considering raw material selection, transport, and lithic production at two newly discovered Oldowan localities: Nyayanga (ca. 2.6 Ma) and Sare River (ca. 1.7 Ma).

The first section of this dissertation outlines a method that enables the comparison of …

The Archaeology Of Mississippian Vulnerability And Resilience In The New Madrid Seismic Zone, Michelle Megan Rathgaber

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

This work examines the vulnerability and resilience of Mississippian people in the Central Mississippi Valley to the large-scale New Madrid seismic zone earthquakes of the late15th to early 16th century. This is done using the theory of eventful archaeology/anthropology to look at cultural materials both before and after an event (such as an earthquake and sand blows) to look for evidence of changes to the schema and resources on which a society relies. If changes are present, the event can be labeled as such, if there are no changes, it means that the society affected did not see the event …

An Early Modern Human Outside Africa, Eric Delson

Publications and Research

Analysis of two fossils from a Greek cave has shed light on early hominins in Eurasia. One fossil is the earliest known specimen of Homo sapiens found outside Africa; the other is a Neanderthal who lived 40,000 years later.

Evolution Of The Modern Baboon (Papio Hamadryas): A Reassessment Of The African Plio-Pleistocene Record, Christopher C. Gilbert, Stephen R. Frost, Kelsey D. Pugh, Monya Anderson, Eric Delson

Publications and Research

Baboons ( Papio hamadryas) are among the most successful extant primates, with a minimum of six distinctive forms throughout Sub-Saharan Africa. However, their presence in the fossil record is unclear. Three early fossil taxa are generally recognized, all from South Africa: Papio izodi , Papio robinsoni and Papio angusticeps. Because of their derived appearance, P. angusticeps and P. robinsoni have sometimes been considered subspecies of P. hamadryas and have been used as biochronological markers for the Plio- Pleistocene hominin sites where they are found.

We reexamined fossil Papio forms from across Africa with an emphasis on their distinguishing features and …

Dental Microwear Textures Of Paranthropus Robustus From Kromdraai, Drimolen, And An Enlarged Sample From Swartkrans: Ecological And Intraspecific Variation, Alexandria Sachiko Peterson

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The original microwear texture baseline for South African hominins was done by Scott et al. (2005) and concluded that Paranthropus robustus exhibited higher complexity values (Asfc) that are seen in occasional hard object feeders. Australopithecus africanus has higher anisotropy values (epLsar) consistent with consuming tough objects. This study expands upon this baseline by increasing the sample size from n = 9 for P. robustus and n = 10 for Au. africanus to n = 66 and n = 44, respectively. Additionally, this study incorporates multiple different sites and deposits. The P. robustus sample includes Drimolen, Kromdraai, and an expanded sample …

Rock Art Management And Landscape Change: Mixed Field Assessment Techniques For Cultural Stone Decay, Kaelin M. Groom

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

As tourism continues to grow as one of the world’s most ubiquitous markets, the development and promotion of non-invasive techniques for cultural stone decay analysis and landscape change are vital to establishing conditional base-lines to best aid cultural heritage management (CRM) efficacy. Using rock art as a medium, this dissertation presents three independent case studies employing the Rock Art Stability Index (RASI) and repeat photography to explore the merits of mixed rapid field assessment techniques in relation to CRM and heritage tourism. While rock art is only one example of irreplaceable world heritage resources, examining how they decay and what …

Juvenile Remains: Predicting Body Mass And Stature In Modern American Populations, Erin F E Pinkston

Cal Poly Humboldt theses and projects

There are increasing numbers of unidentified persons in the U.S. and abroad. To generate positive identifications, forensic anthropologists and others working in the medicolegal field employ a variety of methods to produce biological profiles to match to case files and missing persons databases. Body mass, and stature are two important components of a biological profile, and both can be estimated using regression formulae derived from skeletal metrics. In cases of unidentified juvenile remains, these are particularly important metrics, as it is difficult or impossible to determine sex in prepubescent remains, and the quality of ancestry estimation is currently under debate …

Climate, Ecology, And Human Evolution During The Plio-Pleistocene, Scott Adam Blumenthal

Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects

A major goal of paleoanthropology is to identify the selective pressures associated with hominin biological and behavioral evolution, yet establishing cause-effect relationships between climate, ecology, and human evolution remains problematic. This dissertation seeks to investigate hominin paleoecology in eastern Africa by reconstructing aspects of climate and ecology using stable isotope analysis.

The first part of this dissertation is focused on the ecology of primates and hominins. Modern tropical African ecosystems provide a useful model for understanding the ecological correlates of isotopic variation in the fossil record, and living primates provide a useful model for understanding the ecological significance of isotopic …

Limiting The Impact Of Destructive Analytical Techniques Through Sequential Microspatial Sampling Of The Enamel From Single Teeth, Alexis E. Dolphin, Mathew A. Teeter, Christine D. White, Fred J. Longstaffe

Earth Sciences Publications

A fundamental research concern within contemporary bioarchaeology is the sensitive balance between the preservation of human remains and the use of destructive techniques to collect information. Here we describe one example of how multiple microspatial destructive/semi-destructive techniques may be carried out in sequence using only the enamel of a single tooth. With careful planning of both sample preparation strategies and sequencing of sampling methods, it is possible to produce multiple datasets, and yet to retain material for future analyses.

In this case, enamel from the teeth of 27 individuals who lived during the early medieval period (AD 1170-1198) in Bergen, …

Early Horizon Camelid Management Practices In The Nepeña Valley, North-Central Coast Of Peru, Paul Szpak, David Chicone, Jean-François Millaire, Christine D. White, Rebecca Parry, Fred Longstaffe

Earth Sciences Publications

South American camelids (llamas and alpacas) were of great economic, social and ritual significance in the pre-Hispanic Andes. Although these animals are largely limited to high-altitude (>3500 masl) pastures, it has been hypothesised that camelids were also raised at lower altitudes in the arid coastal river valleys. Previous isotopic studies of Early Intermediate Period (c. 200 BC - AD 600) and Middle Horizon (c. AD 600 - 1100) camelids support this argument. Here, we utilise carbon and nitrogen isotopic analyses of camelid bone collagen from the Early Horizon (c. 800 - 200 BC) sites of Caylán and Huambacho on …

A Comparison Of The Utility Of Craniometric And Dental Morphological Data For Assessing Biodistance And Sex-Differential Migration In The Pacific Islands, Brittney A. Eubank

Graduate Student Theses, Dissertations, & Professional Papers

Genetic analysis of maternally-inherited mitochondrial DNA and the paternally-inherited Y-chromosome yield contrasting pictures of movement of peoples into the Pacific Islands. A possible explanation for this discrepancy is a matrilocal residency pattern practiced by early Pacific settlers, in which Melanesian men were brought into settler communities to intermarry with local women, yielding a higher intrapopulation variance and lower interpopulation variance exhibited in males compared to females. This research investigates the possibility of sex-differential migration in the Oceanic populations of Easter Island, Fiji, Guam, Mokapu, and New Britain through analysis of biodistance based on dental morphological trait frequencies and craniometric measures …

Provisioning And Its Effects On The Social Interactions Of Tibetan Macaques (Macaca Thibetana) At Mt. Huangshan, China, Brianna I. Schnepel

All Master's Theses

The dispersal patterns of food resources has a significant effect on the composition of primate groups and social interactions within those groups. Humans often alter the dispersal of food. Non-humans often use affiliative behaviors to elicit tolerance or support from other group members. I investigated whether provisioned food resources alter the social interactions and group dynamics of Macaca thibetana. All-occurrence sampling and scan sampling were used for data recorded by camera traps. Trail-cameras were placed at six locations that contain natural and human food resources and recorded 60-second videos. Social behavior and proximity of the monkeys were recorded. I …

Tempo And Mode Of Domestication During The Neolithic Revolution: Evidence From Dental Mesowear And Microwear Of Sheep, Melissa Zolnierz

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The Neolithic Revolution marked a dramatic change in human subsistence practices. In order to explain this change, we must understand the motive forces behind it. Researchers have proposed many different stimuli, with most theories invoking environmental dynamics, human population density increases beyond environmental carrying capacity, and the natural outgrowth of human and plant/animal interactions. However, unanswered questions remain concerning the mechanics of animal domestication. Traditional studies of changing faunal morphology and skeletal population profiles offer some clues, but such research has had limited success identifying stages intermediate between wild and domesticated forms, which makes it difficult to discern initial attempts …

Effects Of Instrumentation On Dental Microwear Textures: Reanalysis And Augmentation Of An Early Hominin Sample, Anna Jacquelyn Ragni

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

Dental microwear texture analysis has been refined to a methodology relying upon scanning confocal microscopy for its advantages of repeatability and standardized quantification. A new instrument, the Plu Neox (Sensofar Corp.) confocal profiler recently entered the market, sparking questions among dental anthropologists related to the advantages and efficacy of this new technology, which has better resolution and lighting properties than previously available white-lighted based confocal profilers. This thesis reports on three complementary studies that set out to evaluate the comparability of the Plu Neox to the Plu Standard system and assess its ability to distinguish primates on the basis of …

Protection Of The Natural And Cultural Heritage Of The Mongolian Altai, Ulikpan Beket, Hans D. Knapp

Erforschung biologischer Ressourcen der Mongolei / Exploration into the Biological Resources of Mongolia, ISSN 0440-1298

The Altai-Sayan Ecoregion is known as a hotspot of biodiversity with large wilderness landscapes and a high rate of endemism in Central Asia and Siberia. There are many large and important protected areas of different categories. Parts of the Russian Altai, the “Golden Mountains of Altai”, are inscribed as World Natural Heritage. Also the neighbouring countries contain pristine landscapes, which could be a potential for an extension to a transnational serial World Heritage Site.

The Mongolian part of the ecoregion is characterized by very diverse landscapes and vegetation complexes: Deserts, semi-deserts and desert steppes in arid basins, river floodplains, salt …