Evolutionary Anthropology

As a biological anthropologist, I am also interested in understanding how the unique limb proportions of apes, humans, and their ancestors evolved through microevolutionary processes. We use a combination of in silico evolutionary modeling and experimental approaches to understand the evolutionary history of the locomotor skeleton in primates, including humans.

Ecomorphology vs evolvability: Primate limb proportions are specialized for different locomotor modes, which may impact their ability to evolve new morphologies in response to selection. We are using in silico modeling  to understand how "easy" it is for one type of primate limb to evolve into another across the adaptive landscape. See Rolian 2020

Longshanks as a model for primate evolution: The Longshanks mouse can be used to study questions that are not possible or practical in primates, including humans. For example, we can use it to study developmental evolution of limb proportions, which are divergent in apes and humans, as well as jumping/running performance, and the mosaic nature of evolutionary change in the locomotor skeleton

Anatomical networks: With our collaborator Rui Diogo, we are using anatomical network analyses (AnNA) to study integration and evolvability in primate limbs. AnNA differs from traditional integration studies in its focus on the topological arrangement of parts (e.g., contacts between bones) rather than their covariation in size and shape.