Abstracts of AAPA Poster and Podium Presentations

Mitochondrial DNA analysis of the Jomon and Epi-Jomon individuals in Hokkaido, Japan.

N. Adachi¹, K. Shinoda², K. Umetsu³, Y. Dodo¹. ¹Department of Anatomy and Anthropology, Tohoku University School of Medicine, ²Department of Anthropology, National Science Museum, Tokyo, ³Department of Experimental and Forensic Pathology, Faculty of Medicine, Yamagata University.

From the morphological point of view, prehistoric populations in Hokkaido are considered to have been least influenced by Yayoi immigrants. Therefore, genetic study of these people can be expected to provide important information on the genealogy of the early settlers of the Japanese archipelago. In the present study, we examined the genealogy of the seventy-six Jomon and Epi-Jomon skeletons excavated in Hokkaido, Japan by mitochondiral DNA analysis.

To identify their genealogy securely, we analyzed the coding region of mtDNA by using amplified product-length polymorphisms (Umetsu et al., 2001, 2005) and direct sequencing. We also sequenced the segments of two hypervariable regions of mtDNA, and assigned the mtDNA under study to relevant haplogroups using the known mtDNA databases.

Haplogroups D4, G1, M7a, and N9b were observed in the individuals, and N9b was by far the most predominant. The frequencies of the haplogroups were quite different from any modern populations including Ainu and Okinawans. Haplogroup N9b is hitherto observed almost only in Japanese populations; therefore, this haplogroup might be the (pre-) Jomon contribution to the modern Japanese mtDNA pool.

Taphonomy of the GD 2 in situ deposits at Gondolin, North West Province, South Africa.

J.W. Adams^1,2. ¹Department of Anthropology, Washington University in St. Louis, ²School of Anatomical Sciences^, University of the Witwatersrand Medical School.

Fossiliferous in situ breccias from Gondolin GD 2 were originally excavated in 1979. Preliminary taphonomic analysis of part of the faunal assemblage suggested that the fossil deposits were accumulated by felids that were possibly using this portion of the cave system as a den site. While this reconstruction implied a similar taphonomic history for the assemblage to the other South African Plio-Pleistocene karstic deposits, GD 2 contrasts these other contemporaneous assemblages in its lack of recovered hominin and other primate specimens. Recent comprehensive reanalysis of the GD 2 assemblage has considered taphonomic aspects of the entire sample. Faunal representation, skeletal element abundance and patterns of pre- and post-depositional modification to remains in the GD 2 assemblage confirm aspects of the original taphonomic reconstruction. When combined with geological data on the original cave system, it appears that the GD 2 deposits were accumulated over a rapid period of time by a predator, likely a felid, which brought nearly complete carcasses into the deposits via a large, lateral entrance. This reanalysis has also revealed strong contrasts between the GD 2 faunal assemblage and the other South African Plio-Pleistocene karstic deposits in several aspects of its taphonomy beyond faunal representation. The summed results of intersite comparisons suggest that the incorporation of hominin and other primate remains into South African karstic deposits during the Plio-Pleistocene were mediated by a series of factors including predator activity, aspects of cave morphology, and the extent to which primates made use of specific cave entrances and systems.

Rightward volumetric asymmetry in the motor hand region of the brain in right- and left-handers.

J.S. Allen^1,2, J. Bruss¹, H. Damasio^1,3. ¹Department of Neurology, University of Iowa, ²Department of Anthropology, University of Southern California, ³Department of Psychology, University of Southern California.

The motor hand region of the brain (the “hand knob”) is located in the superior part of the precentral gyrus (Yousry et al. 1997). In great apes, the left hand knob is larger than the right (Hopkins and Pilcher 2001); handedness may be associated with asymmetries in the hand knob favoring the contralateral side (Hopkins and Cantalupo 2004). Hand knob volumetric asymmetries in humans have not been examined. Although structural asymmetries associated with functional laterality may be expected in this part of the brain, non-volumetric investigations (VBM) of asymmetries in the hand knob region have not provided consistent results.

We used high-resolution MRI to measure hand knob gray and white matter volume (GM, WM) in 25 right-handers (14 F, 11 M, avg. age 28.5) and 23 left-handers (15 F, 8 M, avg. age 36.2). Hand knobs were manually traced on contiguous axial slices (1mm thick), after identification of landmarks following Yousry et al. Volumes of the frontal lobes and precentral gyrus were also determined.

Asymmetry scores indicate that WM volume in males and females regardless of handedness is strongly rightwardly asymmetric. In males only (either handedness), GM volume is also larger on the right. Preliminary results of the precentral gyrus indicate that that structure is symmetric in right-handers, thus rightward asymmetry may be limited to the motor hand area.

These results indicate that there has been a reorganization of the motor hand area during hominid evolution. How this structural asymmetry relates to the evolution of handedness remains to be determined.

Funding: Program Project Grant NINDS NS 19632 and the Mathers Foundation.

Analysis of the human skeletal remains from the Fate Bell Shelter (41VV74).

C.Alvarez. Department of Anthropology, Texas State University--San Marcos.

Fate Bell Shelter (41VV74) is a rock shelter within Seminole Canyon, located in the Lower Pecos archeological region of Texas. The shelter contained artifacts, elaborate rock art and burials that indicate an occupation of over 8,000 years, from the Middle Archaic (5500-3200 BP) to the Late Prehistoric Period (1320-450 BP). University of Texas archaeologists carried out the first major excavation of the shelter in 1932. The site report indicates that eight burials were uncovered, three of which had no skeletal remains, while the remaining burials were comprised of two infant burials, one child burial, one adult burial, and one group burial containing four adult skeletons and scattered subadult remains (Pearce and Jackson, 1933). Associated artifacts suggest human skeletal remains at the site date to the Middle through the Late Archaic period (5500-1300 BP).

Analyses revealed that a total of 13 individuals were represented among the eight burials reported, including five adults, one adolescent, four children, and three infants. Of the five adults and one adolescent present, four females, one male and one individual of indeterminate sex are represented. The results of analyses of general pathology and oral health on both adults and subadults are examined and provide a biological profile of the individuals at the site. A comparative analysis of the Fate Bell Shelter to other mortuary sites in the Lower Pecos region is also presented and provides insight into the health and mortuary practices of individuals living in the region during the Archaic period.

Species and varieties of early Homo.

S.C. Antón. Department of Anthropology, New York University.

The fossil record of early Homo, commonly assigned to H. habilis and H. erectus, is scant, widely dispersed, and the subject of taxonomic arguments. Whether we recognize more than eight or only one species is predicated on paradigmatic differences in how to recognize species in the fossil record. The undertaking is fraught with two issues; the inadequacy of these fossil samples to address levels of population variation, and the more intractable issue of how best to view living species and project them into the past. As our appreciation of the influences of size and scale on morphological characters increases with larger samples – the definitive distinctions between many proposed groups blur. I present evidence of some level of isolation in certain regions – certainly in northern China, perhaps in island Southeast Asia, and Georgia. However, isolation is difficult to argue for either East or South Africa. And the level of isolation implied by the morphology is not as extreme as for western Neandertals whose specific status is contested.

Evidence from the extant world argues that we might come at the question from another direction rather than focusing on the names assigned. If we view the morphological evidence in light of the ecological contexts in which these hominins lived and we glean from this some understanding of the local adaptations relevant to their evolution, their degree of isolation, and how quickly it arose, we are indeed addressing the same question of biological interest to taxonomists, although we may call it by another name.

Sexual swelling relative to occurrence and timing of ovulation in Papio sp.

J. Derringer Aranda¹, E. Brindle¹, K.D. Carey², K. Rice², M. Tatar³, K.A. O’Connor¹. ¹Department of Anthropology and Center for Studies in Demography and Ecology, University of Washington; ²Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research; ³Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology, Brown University.

Sexual swelling is used to infer ovulation in wild female baboons. Previous studies reported conflicting results on the relationship between turgescence and timing of ovulation in captive populations. Reliability of predicting ovulation in wild animals subjected to various natural stressors has not been tested. Moreover, previous research has investigated only ovulatory cycles and not addressed the predictability of ovulation. This study explores the predictability of the timing and occurrence of ovulation in relation to turgescence within a stressful situation in captive Papio sp.

Twenty female baboons were transferred from group enclosures to individual cages. They were monitored daily for four months for turgescence, menstrual bleeds and urinary FSH, estrone conjugates and pregnanediol-3-glucuronide. The occurrence and timing of ovulation were estimated hormonally using modifications of published algorithms.

Of 81 cycles studied, 64 were neither right nor left censored. Results reveal no significant effect of the stress of isolation. Ovulation occurred in 80/81 cycles with a mean day of ovulation of 15.09 (range=8-30). Relative to turgescence 76% of ovulations occurred from one to five days prior to deturgescence, and 15% occurred outside maximal turgescence. One ovulation occurred in the absence of turgescence, but within a normal hormonal cycle, and the single hormonally anovulatory cycle occurred within a normal swelling cycle. The results suggest turgescence is an imperfect indicator of the timing and occurrence of ovulation. Hormonal evaluation can improve the quality and quantity of data for research on reproductive biology and ecology in Papio sp.

Species resilience in Homo: An analogy to the wolf-like canids.

A. Clark Arcadi. Department of Anthropology, Cornell University.

Neither morphological nor genetic analyses have definitively resolved the question of whether more than one species of Homo existed contemporaneously in the Pleistocene. This is largely because the taxonomic significance of morphological and genetic differences between closely similar animals is unclear. This paper uses an analogy to the wolf-like canids to ask the question, How many Homo species should there be, given their likely behavioral profile(s)? In contrast to earlier comparisons to social carnivores which sought to illuminate hominid behavioral ecology, this paper explores constraints on the process of speciation itself. Wolves and coyotes are similar to Pleistocene hominids in three key ways: (1) they are adapted for endurance locomotion, (2) they are flesh eaters, but can meet their subsistence needs in a variety of ways, and (3) they are socially flexible. As a consequence of these behavioral parallels, the evolutionary history of the wolf-like canids can be used to infer the probable evolutionary effect of two defining aspects of Pleistocene Homo: (1) their relative habitat tolerance, predicted from evidence of their dietary breadth, technical sophistication, and social plasticity; and (2) their high mobility, predicted from morphological indicators of a capacity for endurance locomotion. The analogy suggests that Pleistocene Homo would not have had the opportunity to speciate, especially in Africa. Unlike an earlier single-species hypothesis based on the Competitive Exclusion Principle, this analysis examines constraints on the speciation process itself among allopatric populations, rather than attempting to specify niche relationships between sympatric species.

Sequence variation in mtDNA hypervariable segment 1 indicates within haplogroup continuity between contemporary and prehistoric Aleut populations.

J.L. Arismendi and D.H. O’Rourke. Department of Anthropology, University of Utah

It has been demonstrated, through the use of discrete marker analysis, that both contemporary and ancient Aleut populations are distinctive relative to other arctic and sub-arctic populations due to their high frequency of mitochondrial DNA haplogroup D. This haplogroup is rarely observed in other populations in northern North America. Contemporary Aleut populations are predominantly D₂, a subtype that is uncommonly observed in more southerly populations that harbor haplogroup D₁.

Sequencing of 355 bp of the hypervariable segment I (HVSI) in the mitochondrial genome has been undertaken on ancient Aleut samples previously identified by discrete marker analysis as haplogroup D in order to further elucidate the relationship between contemporary and ancient Aleut populations. Haplogroup D is characterized by the transition 16129G→A, while the D₂ subtype is defined by the following single nucleotide polymorphisms: 16223C→T, 16271T→C, and 16362T→C. Of these polymorphisms, 16129A and 16271C uniformly occurred in contemporary Aleut populations. Although the sample size of ancient samples analyzed to date (n=5) is small, sequences do confirm haplogroup D continuity between prehistoric and modern Aleuts. Ancient Aleuts belong to the subtype D₂ and are characterized by the same recurrent polymorphisms (16129A and 16271C) observed in modern Aleuts. This is consistent with lineage continuity for haplogroup D from its earliest observation in the archaeological record to the present in the Aleutians.

Sequence analysis of haplogroup A individuals, characterizing the most ancient of the prehistoric Aleut individuals, complement the analysis of haplogroup D and are ongoing.

Relatedness of Eurasian and American Far Northern populations to the Amerindians: HLA genes and linguistics.

A. Arnaiz-Villena and M.H. Crawford., Dept. of Immunology, University Complutense, Madrid, Spain and Dep. of Anthropology, University of Kansas, Lawrence.

The tripartite theory for the peopling of the Americas is supported by this study of approximately 15,000 HLA chromosomes from a worldwide sample. On the basis of the HLA system, it is remarkable that Meso- and South American Amerindians appear to be more closely related to Siberian populations but differ significantly from the Athabaskans and Eskimo-Aleuts. The Aleuts exhibit a high frequency HLA-DRB1* 0401 and *1402. Both subtypes are absent in neighboring Athabascans or in any other North American First Native populations. A similar pattern is observed for HLA-A* 02 subtypes with * 0206 being frequent in Aleuts but infrequent or absent in other North American populations. The most common extended HLA haplotype in Aleuts, HLA-A* 2402-B* 4002 –DRB1*1402 and DQB1*0301, was absent in ancient North Americans. This study assesses the relationship of genetics and languages of Far Northern European groups and evaluates their potential role in the peopling of the Americas. It is unexpected that our genetic HLA data clusters Andean populations with South Asians, raising questions concerning the reliability and consistency of specific markers in the reconstruction of human evolution. NaDene and Caucasian language groups may have formed an earlier substratum on which other more recent languages evolved in Eurasia and the Americas. The unique frequencies of the HLA haplotypes support the mtDNA sequence-based reconstruction of the phylogenetic position of the Aleuts vis a vis other populations of the Circumpolar region of the world.

Testing clambering, climbing, and leaping: Positional behavior definitions in relation to support use and canopy height.

G.P. Aronsen. Department of Anthropology, Yale University.

Definitions used in primate positional behavior research vary across studies. For example, clambering may be subsumed into other behaviors (i.e., quadrupedalism or climbing) by some authors, or considered unique by others. Leaping also has a general definition, but different characteristics exist in relation to direction and distance. Comparisons of these behavioral modes are made against canopy height and support features to test the discrimination of these behaviors.

I collected data on three species (Cercopithecus ascanius, Lophocebus albigena, and Piliocolobus rufomitratus) at the Ngogo Research Area, Kibale Forest National Park, Uganda in 2001 and 2003. Results indicate that support characteristics provide better discrimination among positional behavior frequencies than canopy height. L. albigena was most similar to C. ascanius in locomotion and canopy use, but comparable to P. rufomitratus in postural frequencies. L. albigena positional behavior and support use frequencies suggest that feeding ecology is a stronger indicator of preferences than body size alone. P. rufomitratus differed significantly from other taxa, using leaping and large supports most often.

Clambering frequencies decreased in association with quadrupedalism and climbing frequencies, and differed from these behaviors in support use characteristics, indicating unique status. Leap distance significantly affected support use patterns in all taxa, with leaps over three body lengths using more small, pliant branches than shorter leaps. These results suggest that detailed definitions identify subtle but important variation in primate positional behavior and support use.

Research supported by the National Science Foundation (BCS-0244733), the Sigma Xi Foundation, and Yale University.

Skeletal Robusticity and Economies of the Ancient Arican Populations in northern Chile.

B. Arriaza, V. Standen. Departamento de Antropología, Universidad de Tarapacá y Centro de Investigación del Hombre en el Desierto, Arica, Chile.

This paper examines potential differences in skeletal robusticity of prehistoric groups from Arica, northern Chile. Measurements for a sample of 165 females and 111 males test the hypothesis that unequal subsistence-related activities among intensive agriculturalists cause a decrease in height and robusticity, compared to fishing and gathering populations. The sample comprises early Chinchorro fishers (3000-2000 B.C.) to late agriculturalists (1200 A.D.).

Female humeri length average 27.6 cm and do not show statistical differences through time and type of economy. However, male fishermen have statistically longer humeri than agriculturalists (30.5 versus 29.7 cm). Male and female tibial and femoral lengths do not change over time. Female tibias average 33 cm and males 35 cm. Female femora average 39 and males 41 cm. Females are shorter than males (150 versus 160 cm) overall.

Chinchorro females have similar midshaft humeral diameters versus agriculturalists, 19 and 18 mm, AP and ML respectively. Fishermen, however, are more robust than agriculturalists. Their humeral AP and ML diameters are 20.8 versus 19.5 mm and 21.4 versus 19.8 mm. Male and female femoral robusticity and midshaft diameters remained steady over time. Female femoral diameters are 25 and 23.5 mm AP and ML respectively. Male femoral diameters are 28 and 25 mm, AP and ML respectively. In brief, humeri are more sensitive to environmental stresses, showing a reduction of robusticity over time. Stronger arms among fishermen could be a consequence of flexion and extension during harpoon throwing. Social inequalities likely produce a greater range of stature in later populations.

Coping with habitat disturbance: Activity patterns of Milne-Edwards’ sifakas in Ranomafana National Park, Madagascar.

S.J. Arrigo-Nelson¹, K. Sampson², T. Clarke², R. DeCamp³, N. Foster-Mann², P. Kwofie², P. Meilicke², and P.C. Wright^2,4. ¹Interdepartmental Doctoral Program in Anthropological Sciences, Stony Brook University, ²Department of Anthropology, Stony Brook University, ³Department of Applied Math and Statistics, Stony Brook University, ⁴Centre ValBio, Ranomafana, Madagascar.

Given the fixed length of the day and the minimum energy requirements that animals must meet to survive, habitat disturbance may lead to alterations in how animals budget their time. When an animal engages in one activity, it incurs an opportunity cost; as it can not engage in other activities critical to its survival or reproductive success. This makes it important for us to understand the relationship between habitat disturbance and primate behavior. Taken from over 3,375 hours of continuous focal group follows, this study compares the activity budgets of individually identifiable Propithecus edwardsi living in disturbed and undisturbed forest environments. Analyses reveal no significant difference in the annual activity patterns of social groups within either the primary (n=3) or disturbed (n=4) forest site. Thus, we are able compare the annual activity patterns of groups between the sites. Results indicate that habitat disturbance significantly decreases the proportion of time that sifakas spend interacting socially, while increasing the time spent feeding and self-grooming. We propose that this decrease in social time may be attributed to the increased amount of time that the disturbed forest sifakas must spend feeding/foraging (due to lower quality resources) and self-grooming (due to higher parasite loads). Ultimately, such a decrease in social activity may lead to a reduction in group cohesion, predator detection, and decreased survival within the disturbed forest. For an endangered species, such consequences could prove catastrophic.

Funding for this project was provided by: Fulbright (IIE), St. Louis Zoo (FRC), National Science Foundation (DDIG), Earthwatch Institute, Wenner-Gren Foundation, Primate Conservation, Inc., and Stony Brook University.

A new reconstruction of Pelvis 1 (Homo heidelbergensis) from the Sima de los Huesos (Atapuerca).

J.L. Arsuaga^1,2, A. Bonmatí^1,2, J.M. Carretero³. ¹Centro UCM-ISCIII de Investigación sobre Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain; ²Dpto. de Paleontología, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain; ³Laboratorio de Evolución Humana. Dpto. de Ciencias Históricas y Geografía, Universidad de Burgos, Burgos, Spain.

The Middle Pleistocene site of the Sima de los Huesos (SH) in the Sierra de Atapuerca has yielded the most complete pelvis (Pelvis 1) of the human fossil record, probably of an adult male. A reconstruction of this specimen based on dry bones has been published previously. Here we reconsider some anatomical aspects, reconstruct some distorted regions, and include estimations of the soft tissue of the sacro-iliac joint and the pubic symphysis. In reconstructing the entire pelvis, four main issues have been addressed: the articulation between the sacrum and both innominate bones, the positioning of the pubis and symphyseal surface and the reconstruction of the unpreserved bony portions of the sacrum and the innominate bones.

To deal with these issues, the new reconstruction has addressed concerns such as: the angle of the iliopectineal line, transversal acetabular diameter, anatomy of the sacroiliac joint, morphology of the obstetric canal, length and morphology of the ischiopubic ramus and position of the pubic symphysis. The reconstruction is made of high-quality casts of the original specimen and is based on CT scans and direct measurements and anatomical observations of the original fossil. We have also consulted the remaining pelvic specimens from the Sima de los Huesos and the original Neandertal pelvis Kebara 2. Finally, the symmetry and anatomy of the modern human pelvis and mirror-imaging have also been considered. The resulting measurements are discussed in the context of Neandertal pelvic evolution, with particular attention paid to the geometry of the birth canal.

A decade of controversy over the teaching of evolution in the United States: a print media analysis.

P.C. Ashmore, Dept. of Anthropology, University of Missouri, St. Louis.

Eighty years have passed since the Scopes Monkey Trial, yet the teaching of evolution in the United States and the general public’s acceptance of the tenets of Darwinian evolution are still being challenged. Recent events covered in print media have refocused attention on the evolution versus creationism controversy in the United States.

The first purpose of this study was to determine if there has been an actual increase in the frequency of media coverage of the evolution - creation controversy and to quantify trends in coverage over the last ten years. Secondly, I wanted to investigate if there were regional differences in coverage and to identify regional themes in how this debate is framed and presented.

Using LexisNexis I conducted a print media search of twenty prominent urban newspapers from four geographic regions in the United States (Northeast, Southeast, Midwest, and Western). Inserting the keywords ‘teaching evolution,’ ‘intelligent design,’ and ‘creationism’ yielded approximately 1000 items all printed within the last decade. Frequency analysis confirms that a spike in coverage did occur in 2005. Over the last ten years this has not been a linear increase. In 1998 and 2003 very sparse coverage occurred.

Over the last decade, newspapers from the Northeast contained the greatest number of relevant publications. The Southeast and Midwest demonstrated intermediate frequencies with the least amount of coverage coming from the West. Overall, the content in these articles reflect the increasing popularity of intelligent design and growing opposition to the teaching of evolution.

One of these is not like the other? Skeletal variation in western Alaska Native Americans, climate, and population history.

B.M. Auerbach. Center for Functional Anatomy and Evolution, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine

Controversy surrounds the origins and relationships of New World and Beringian Arctic peoples. Much research has focused on central and western native Alaskan affinities to groups on both sides of the Bering Strait. Analyses using multiple data sources (e.g., Ousley, 1995) have provisionally resolved these populations’ relationships. However, cranial and post-cranial morphological covariation has not been comprehensively documented among them or with exogenous factors (e.g., climate). Purported morphological relationships could be confounded by shared environment.

This study examines cranial and post-cranial variation among pre- and proto-historic Alaskan natives in relation to climatic factors and proposed affinities. 100 cranial and post-cranial osteometric measurements were obtained from 270 skeletons representing five groups: Unangan, Ikogmiut, Inupiaq, Birnirk Culture, and Tigara. 90 Wintun and Hawikuh skeletons provided comparative groups. The osteometrics were analyzed using non-parametric and multivariate parametric tests on basic measurements and derived morphological indices (e.g., intralimb indices). NOAA climatological databases provided temperature and precipitation data.

No Arctic populations significantly differed in facial or crural indices, though all five significantly differed from the two comparative groups (p<0.01). Contrastingly, significant differences exist among Arctic populations in cephalic, nasal, and brachial indices, as well as relative sitting heights and estimated body mass (p<0.05), with the Unangan and Birnirk populations clustering apart from the other Arctic groups. The morphologies have significant but generally small correlations with climate (r<0.20), except for intralimb indices (r>0.60). Shared climate is therefore interpreted to differentially affect these morphologies in relation to effects of common ancestry, gene flow or other environmental factors.

Ethics, ethnicity and genetic structure in southeastern Kenya: implications for the assignment of African-Americans to African ethnic groups.

K.B. Babrowski, S.R. Williams. Department of Anthropology, University of Illinois – Chicago.

As genetic ancestry testing becomes increasingly more popular, care must be taken to avoid inadvertently reinforcing public misconceptions concerning race and ethnic identity. Members of the general public often perceive ethnic groups to be static and unchanging and view human genetic variation as something that is easily divided into orderly, non-overlapping ethnic or racial packages. Our recent study of two large ethnic groups from southeastern Kenya, the Taita and Mijikenda, will serve to highlight some of the difficulties inherent in using genetic ancestry testing to assign African-Americans to African ethnic groups.

Modern Taita and Mijikenda ethnic identities emerged in the early twentieth century in response to pressure on area groups to form units that fit British notions of “African tribes” and were more easily administered by the colonial government. Groups of people with no prior sense of shared identity were clustered together, with “chiefs” appointed to replace local councils of tribal elders. Consequently, shared origin myths and languages cross-cut ethnic boundaries in place today. Trading patterns and intermarriage among these groups and their neighbors have also influenced regional genetic patterns. The fluidity of conceptions of ethnicity in this area is common in many parts of Africa and has been reported by many social anthropologists and historians. The complexity of genetic patterning observed in this region suggests that individuals who expect to be provided with an exact “genetic match” with their ancestral ethnic group based on a DNA sample are likely to learn that this is not possible.

Population density and genetic diversity of the black-and-white ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata) in Mangevo, Madagascar.

A.L. Baden¹, P.C. Wright², E.E. Louis³. ¹IDPAS, Stony Brook University, ²Dept. of Anthropology, Stony Brook University, ³Center for Conservation and Research, Henry Doorly Zoo.

The critically endangered black-and-white ruffed lemur (Varecia variegata) is considered among Madagascar’s top conservation priorities. Despite a widespread range throughout the country’s eastern rainforests, prior population estimates indicate that densities are typically low, and the species cannot be considered common anywhere in its range. Increasingly fragmented habitats threaten the species with reproductive isolation, reducing genetic diversity and therefore increasing the risk of disease and reduced reproductive fitness as effective population sizes decrease. Long-term Varecia studies are few and rarely include genetic analyses. Therefore, further research on the population densities and genetic relatedness of the species is necessary to effectively ensure its tenure.

This study provides preliminary results from a newly established site, Mangevo (S21°22’49.8”, E047°26’88.3”), located near the southeastern most peripheral zones of Ranomafana National Park (RNP). Annual censuses were conducted from April 2004 to 2005. Two-kilometer transects were surveyed twice daily, resulting in a total distance surveyed of over 120 km. Results suggest unusually high V. variegata densities (24.31 ind/km²) with group sizes ranging from three to seven individuals. Additionally, a total of N = 22 individuals comprising two RNP subpopulations (Mangevo, N = 12; Vatoharanana, N = 10) were immobilized and blood and tissue samples were collected. Heterozygosity levels were analyzed and tested for Hardy Weinberg equilibria within and between populations using 20 species-specific polymorphic nuclear microsatellite loci. Results from this research will serve as baseline data for studying the relationships between genetic relatedness and the sociality and infant-care strategies of V. variegata.

Funding provided by Primate Conservation, Inc., Conservation International: Primate Action Fund, and Stony Brook University.

Who made the early Aurignacian? Evidence from isolated teeth.

S.E. Bailey. Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology (Leipzig), Department of Anthropology, New York University.

Neandertals and anatomically modern humans overlapped in Europe between 45- and 30,000 BP. Unfortunately, the human fossil record during this important time period is sparse. What is preserved is fragmentary and consists primarily of jaws and isolated teeth. This has led some to question whether we can determine if Neandertals or anatomically modern humans were responsible for the early Aurignacian. The goals of this study were, first, to investigate whether root lengths can help differentiate these two taxa; and second, to combine these data with tooth crown traits to assess the taxonomic affiliation of isolated teeth from two early Aurignacian sites (Brassempouy and La Ferrassie).

Root lengths were measured from the lingual aspect of permanent teeth of Neandertals (maximum n=15) and Upper Paleolithic modern humans (maximum n=10). The student’s t-test showed that the mean root lengths of I¹, I², C’, I₁, I₂, C, P₃, P₄ and M₂ were significantly longer in Neandertals than in Upper Paleolithic moderns (p<0.05), with no overlap in the ranges of I¹, I₁, C’, and P⁴. At Brassempouy, the root lengths of the two I¹s, C’ and M² fall more than three standard deviations below the Neandertal mean. Likewise, the single I¹ from Le Ferrassie possesses a root that is too short to be considered Neandertal. Additionally, the tooth crowns at both Brassempouy and La Ferrassie lack any diagnostically Neandertal traits. Thus, the preponderance of dental evidence suggests that anatomically modern humans, not Neandertals, are associated with these early Aurignacian sites.

This study was supported by the Department of Human Evolution, Max Planck Institute for Evolutionary Anthropology (Leipzig).

Calories or oxygen? Skeletal growth tradeoffs at high altitude.

S.M. Bailey¹, J. Xu² J, H. Feng³, X. Hu⁴, C. Zhang³, S. Qui³. ¹Department of Anthropology, Tufts University, ²Department of Applied Mathematics, Sichuan University, ³Department of Exercise Sciences, Sichuan University, ⁴Department of Geography, South China Normal University.

Recent adaptive models specify metabolic tradeoffs between hypoxia and energy utilization. Variation in children’s limb proportion at high altitude may provide a useful test of such models. We have shown previously that hypoxia targets distal leg growth. Others have argued that size reduction at high altitude is nutritionally mediated. We tested the relative contributions of caloric status and hypoxia to skeletal segment growth, using MANOVA designs corrected for age. Tibetan and Han children aged 8 through 11 living at 3100 m, 3650 m, and 3830 m were analyzed. Caloric status was measured by percent body fat, skinfolds, arm muscle area, and BMI. Hypoxia was measured by pulse oximetry, FVC, and blood pressure. Only hypoxia impacted distal limb length or internal limb proportions, while only caloric status affected sitting height and arm length. In two samples, hypoxic and caloric status independently effected height, chest circumference, and leg length. Ethnicity had marginal effects, and sex, none. We conclude that in the prepubescent skeleton, distal limb segments, especially the tibia, react primarily to hypoxia, while proximal segments and the trunk more reflect caloric status. This pattern of intra-skeleton variation is consistent with Lampl’s prenatal metabolic model involving Hypoxia-Inducing Factor (HIF-1) protein. At an anthropometric level, the study of decanalization may yield richer adaptive insights if we implicate multiple stressors at segmental growth sites. At a theoretical level, these findings are compatible with selective models in which individuals with longer lower limbs will be reproductively favored.

From Matthews to Merbs: Bioarchaeology in southern Arizona.

B.J. Baker¹, R.J. Hill^1,2. ¹School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, ²Soil Systems, Inc.

Bioarchaeology in the American Southwest has focused primarily upon ancestral Pueblo populations of the Four Corners region. Despite early attention to the Hohokam by the Hemenway Expedition in the 1890s, little work was subsequently conducted among the groups in southern Arizona until Charles Merbs refocused attention on these neglected populations. Since he joined the faculty of Arizona State University (ASU) in 1973, Merbs has authored or coauthored 16 articles and book chapters on Southwestern skeletal samples and coedited an influential volume on Health and Disease in the Prehistoric Southwest. His reports include analysis of both cremations and inhumations, encouraging interest in studies of the former. Contributions to paleopathology in the southern Southwest range from recognition of coccidioidomycosis in the skeleton to scalping and, of course, congenital conditions of the spine.

Compliance with federal and state laws has been the catalyst for considerable fieldwork in southern Arizona in the past three decades. Charles Merbs’ stimulus to new research on skeletal samples in this region has promoted an increased understanding of life and death within Hohokam, Sinagua, and Prescott societies. Knowledge of disease, trauma, relatedness, and mortuary practices has expanded due to the research of Merbs, other ASU faculty, and their students. Bioarchaeology in southern Arizona, emphasizing recent investigations at Pueblo Grande and other Hohokam sites, the Sinagua site of Nuvakwewtaqa (Chavez Pass), and sites in the Prescott area, is summarized within this framework.

Skeletal trauma analysis of the Mexican War dead from the battle of Resaca de la Palma

L.E. Baker¹, D. Wescott², D.C. Wernecke³ and M.B. Collins³. ¹Department of Anthropology, Forensic Science and Archaeology, Baylor University, ²Department of Anthropology, University of Missouri, ³Texas Archaeological Research Laboratory, University of Texas.

The Battle of Resaca de la Palma, the second battle of the United States-Mexico War, was fought on May 9, 1846 near an abandoned bed of the Rio Grande in present day Brownsville, Texas. The battle was decisively won by U.S. troops and resulted in the death and injury of hundreds of Mexican soldiers. The following day, U.S. military personnel buried the dead Mexican soldiers in several mass graves. One of the mass graves containing the skeletal remains of at least 30 young to middle aged adult individuals, including three or more females, was discovered in 1967 and excavated by archaeologists at the University of Texas-Austin. In this paper, we present observations of battlefield injuries and physical stress indicators among the Mexican war dead and discusses their etiology.

Several of the soldiers exhibit healed (antemortem) battlefield injuries from previous engagements, and at least 15 individuals have unhealed (perimortem) projectile or blade induced injuries. There are no indications of surgical intervention associated the antemortem or perimortem traumatic injuries. Furthermore, most of the individuals have traumatic bone formation on the lower limbs resulting from strenuous physical activity. Most interestingly, nearly all of the males with femora present have a long and narrow area of periosteal reaction on the anterolateral surface of the proximal diaphysis. We hypothesize that this injury was caused by chronic muscle inflammation resulting from shooting their muskets “from the hip” instead of the shoulder.

Functional morphology of the hominoid clavicle.

K.B. Barker, C.V. Ward. The University of Missouri, Columbia.

Shoulder girdle morphology in hominoids is related to body form and functional adaptation. Studies of pectoral girdle variation among hominoids have most often focused on the scapula. The clavicle has received comparatively little attention despite its potential to reveal important information about the functional morphology of the shoulder in early hominins, This research compares the morphology of extant hominoid clavicles in an effort to create a basis for understanding shoulder girdle functional morphology in Australopithecus and early Homo.

Clavicles of Homo sapiens, Pan troglodytes, Gorilla gorilla and Pongo pygmaeus from the Cleveland Museum of Natural History and National Museum of National History were compared metrically and non-metrically. Results show that although the clavicle varies within and among taxa, systematic differences among species are present. Human clavicles have a superoinferiorly expanded sternal end compared with those of apes, related to manubrial differences between extant apes and humans. Humans also have a large, laterally situated attachment for the sternocostal ligaments, while that of apes is smaller and medially restricted. Pongo has a more distally placed attachment for the coracoclavicular ligaments than do the other taxa, and increased torsion of the acromial end. There is also variation among taxa in deltoid muscle (Ohman, 1986), and in coracoclavicular ligament attachment geometry.

Intraspecific differences in clavicle morphology identified in this research reflect clavicular orientation and attachment of muscles and ligaments. These data can to be applied to functional analysis of fossil hominin clavicles, and so inform us about shoulder girdle morphology in fossil hominins.

Brain and somatic growth in strepsirrhines: implications for variation in life history.

N.L. Barrickman. Department of Biological Anthropology and Anatomy, Duke University.

The large brains of primates are associated with slow life histories, which may be enforced by the costs of brain growth. Slowed somatic growth may compensate for rapid early brain growth, necessitating an extended interval between offspring and a delayed maturation.

To test these hypotheses, growth of the body and braincase was studied in three strepsirrhine species (Daubentonia madagascariensis: n = 3; Propithecus verreauxi: n = 4, Lemur catta: n = 5) housed at the Duke University Primate Center. The width and length of the cranium were taken periodically using calipers. Body weight, interbirth interval and age at maturity for each species were derived from the Primate Center records.

The hypothesis that larger brain size is achieved by increases in brain growth rate was supported. Daubentonia had a head growth rate nearly double that of Propithecus and Lemur. However, somatic growth rates in Daubentonia and Lemur were not significantly different from each other, though the two species are approximately the same adult body size and Daubentonia has an interbirth interval and age at maturity nearly double that of Lemur. These data suggest that there are other critical factors such as diet or behavioral development that explain the link between brain size and life history in these species.

Paleodemography and health in Predynastic Upper Egypt: a perspective from the working-class cemetery at Hierakonpolis.

E.K. Batey. Department of Anthropology, University of Arkansas.

The rise of the Egyptian state was a complex process, involving increases in both population and per capita output. In his work on the Industrial Revolution in Europe, Komlos (1989) suggests that increased availability of nutrients provided many with an escape from the “Malthusian trap” that had served as a check on population growth for most of human history. Within an economic-historical framework, an expectation is that, for the emerging Egyptian state, overall disease and stress would have become so high, as to suppress production. Paleodemographic and paleopathological data from the working-class cemetery at Hierakonpolis (HK43) allow us to test hypotheses regarding the overall health of those paying the biological “cost” of increased economic productivity.

The age-at-death distribution at HK43 departs from what is normally expected in archaeological samples. Children younger than 5 years are underrepresented—10.1% (42/415). Young adults, 20 to 35 years of age, comprise the largest proportion of the sample—40.0% (166/415). Frequencies of pathological lesions are highest—87.9% (29/33)—among subadults younger than 15 years of age and much lower—31.8% (54/170)—for young adults. Underrepresentation of young children is likely due to differential burial practices. The low frequency of pathological lesions, as well as other non-specific stress indicators (hypoplasias, Harris lines, etc.), among adults suggests that those interred at HK43 possessed the biological capital to support the socioeconomic changes that accompanied the unification of Egypt.

Acknowledgements are extended to Renée Friedman, Director of the Hierakonpolis Expedition, and the Friends of Nekhen for funding support. Further funding for this research was provided by NSF grant BCS-0119754.

A study of the L1c haplogroup of the mitochondrial DNA.

C. Batini¹, V. Coia¹, M. Pilkington², C. Battaggia¹, J. Rocha³, G. Spedini¹, G.Destro-Bisol¹, D. Comas⁴, F. Calafell⁴. ¹University of Rome “La Sapienza”, Dept. of Human and Animal Biology, ²Dept. of Anthropology, University of Arizona, ³Ipatimup, University of Porto, Portugal, ⁴Department Ciencies de la Salut i de la Vida, Universitat Pompeu Fabra, Barcelona, Spain.

In this communication, we present a study of the human mitochondrial haplogroup L1c which has been carried out on a total of 455 individuals from 27 African and American populations using both hypervariable regions 1 and 2.

The results obtained lead us to draw three main conclusions. First, the time to the L1c most recent common ancestor (TMRCA) has been estimated as 90,000 ± 13,000 YBP, substantially older than the previous estimate (59,650 ± 11,800) and in agreement with archaeological dating. Second, we observed that L1c frequencies reach very high values in Western Pygmies populations (from 86% to 98%), hunter-gatherers supposed to be the most ancient inhabitants of this area. Third and finally, the median networks built using our dataset change the phylogeny of the entire haplogroup. In fact, we present a substantially modified structure for the sub-haplogroups L1c1 and L1c3 and identify a new clade, L1c4 which contains mostly sequences from Pygmies.

Taking into consideration the L1c phylogeographic features together with archaeological knowledge, we propose that the hunter-gatherers communities living in Central Africa at least 40,000 YBP could be the ancestors of both Bantu and Western Pygmy populations. These two groups could have separated later on, because of the cycles of expansion and fragmentation of the forest environment occurred till 12,000 YBP.

As the next step of this research, we will sequence the complete mtDNA genome in order to test the robustness of the new phylogeny.

The use of biogeographical ancestry for forensic, biomedical, and recreational genomics.

M. Bauchet, M.D. Shriver, Department of Anthropology, Penn State University.

Ancestry tests using the Y-chromosome and mtDNA, similarly to the genealogists’ lineage approach, are powerful at finding genetic relationships between individuals and groups. Whole-genome ancestry tests are able to predict biogeographical affinities of an individual with increased accuracy. Such methods estimate a person’s genomic ancestry, i.e. the average level of admixture calculated throughout the genome using ancestry informative markers (AIMs).

Genomic ancestry has forensic applications such as estimating ancestry from evidentiary DNA samples. Ongoing research on facial features prediction is promising and already has good accuracy for predicting eye color. Examples will be given of successful applications to solving criminal cases, by predicting both a suspect and victim ancestry using evidentiary DNA.

Genomic ancestry tests are also useful to epidemiologists wanting to find out how admixture impacts drug response in clinical trials. Not controlling for ancestry can potentially bias case-control studies. Genomic ancestry estimates may indicate risk of susceptibility to certain conditions, hence helping doctors to select a diagnostic that might otherwise be too costly to apply to the whole population.

A growing number of people are curious about their ancestry. Genomic ancestry offers a necessary and complementary view to lineage methods.

Genomic ancestry measures depend on how good and how many the AIMs are, which analytical models are employed and who should be used as “parental” populations. Interpreting results requires careful consideration, especially for individuals that do not fit the initial population model. Using genetic and non-genetic information from other family members can be critical in this regard.

An analysis of health indicators in subadults from select Mimbres populations: Why is there no correlation?

H.J. Bauer-Clapp, K.T. Blue. Department of Anthropology, Minnesota State University, Mankato.

The Mimbres occupied sites in the Mimbres River valley from approximately 100 AD to 1200 AD in what is now southwestern New Mexico. The sites examined (Galaz, Cameron Creek, Hudson and Hot Springs) date to 1000-1150 AD when the Mimbres practiced intensive agriculture. Previous research on these populations has suggested there is no discernible correlation between two separate indicators of nutritional stress, Harris lines and enamel hypoplasia, in the studied populations. This study was expanded to focus on the health of subadults (n=56) from the same populations. Health was assessed by the following: presence or absence of periostitis and other indicators of infectious disease; cribra orbitalia, porotic hyperostosis, enamel hypoplasia, Harris lines and other indications of nutritional stress; dental pathologies including caries and abscesses; and long bone length relative to dental age.

Analysis indicates that while many of the above conditions are common among the Mimbres subadults, there is no clear correlation between any one of the indicators, even among those purporting to measure the same condition. For example, individuals with a discrepancy (.5 to 5 yrs) between long bone length relative to dental age are no more likely to exhibit Harris lines than an individual with no such discrepancy. This suggests the effects of the so-called “osteological paradox.” Age-at-death disparities may also be a factor, as well as the possibility that the Mimbres suffered from a greater variety of stressors than previously thought. Implications for future studies of subadult health, the Mimbres, and the Southwest are discussed.

Iterative dispersal across Beringia by early Cenozoic primates.

K.C. Beard. Section of Vertebrate Paleontology, Carnegie Museum of Natural History.

New records of early Cenozoic primates (sensu lato) from Asia reveal an iterative pattern of dispersal directly between Asia and North America at several times during the Tertiary. Current knowledge of early Cenozoic paleogeography suggests that the only viable route for primate dispersal between Asia and North America would have traversed Beringia. Because primates are among the most thermophilic of living mammals, these instances of trans-Beringian dispersal by early Cenozoic primates serve as useful proxies for globally warm climatic conditions.

The earliest evidence for primate dispersal between Asia and North America dates to the Paleocene, when a variety of carpolestids are known to occur on either side of the Pacific Basin. The well-known episode of global warming at the Paleocene-Eocene boundary marks the first record of euprimates in North America and Europe. Phylogenetic data and new paleontological evidence suggest that these earliest North American and European euprimates arrived from Asia, traversing the Beringian region as a direct response to global warming at the Paleocene-Eocene boundary. Later episodes of Tertiary primate dispersal across Beringia occurred during the middle Eocene and near the Oligo-Miocene boundary. Additional episodes of Tertiary primate dispersal between Asia and North America are likely, but these remain undocumented by fossils.

Support from NSF 0309800 is gratefully acknowledged.

An evaluation of possible associations between skeletal remains and Mimbres ceramic typology: The Galaz Ruin.

L. Becker¹, M. Birnbaum¹, K.T. Blue². ¹Department of Anthropology, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee, ²Department of Anthropology, Minnesota State University, Mankato.

Galaz Ruins, a Mimbres site located in southwestern New Mexico, was excavated during the summer seasons of 1929, 1930 and 1931 by the University of Minnesota. 995 burials were excavated, containing 982 ceramic vessels. Separate records were kept of the excavation of the remains and the ceramic vessels. A preliminary skeletal analysis was completed in the field on certain remains; however the majority of the remains went unanalyzed. Subsequent publications concerning these remains focused only on the possible age and sex of the individual, without regard to the mortuary goods interred with them.

The purpose of this study was to identify sex, age and any possible pathology of these remains, and to associate the remains with their interred mortuary goods. The ceramic vessels were matched with their associated remains by correlating the inventory records from the University and the field notes from the excavations. The skeletal material was analyzed and divided into groups by age and sex. Forty-one percent of the individuals from Galaz were interred with ceramic vessels. The subadult group was more likely to be interred with at least one vessel, with several individuals having more than one. No difference was seen between the number of vessels interred with males or females, however, males in this study were more likely to be interred with Mimbres Classic black-on-white style III.

The lumbar lordosis of Homo neanderthalensis.

E. Been^1,2, H. Pessah¹, S. Peleg¹, Y. Rak¹. ¹Department of Anatomy and Anthropology, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University, ² Department of Physical Therapy, Sackler Faculty of Medicine, Tel Aviv University.

In the last century, the question of Neandertal posture attracted a great deal of attention. The first to address the question was Marcellin Boule (1911-1913) who claimed that Neandertals had a rounded back with reduced lumbar lordosis. Later researchers disagreed with Boule's conclusions and claimed that Neandertal posture was not different from the posture of Homo sapiens. In this study we compared the osseous lumbar lordosis of Neandertal and H. sapiens and estimated the degree of Neandertal lumbar lordosis.

The sample included 75 lumbar spines (T₁₁–L₅) of H. sapiens and seven early hominids; three early H. sapiens—Cro-Magnon 1, 2, and 3—and four Neandertals—Kebara 2, Shanidar 3, La Chapelle-aux-Saints, and one vertebra of Regourdou. The body angle of each vertebra (T₁₁–L₅) was measured.

Our results show that in the middle-upper lumbar vertebrae (L₁–L₄) and the lower thoracic vertebra (T₁₂), the body angle in Neandertal is significantly more kyphotic than in H. sapiens. The cumulative angle of adjacent vertebrae (T₁₂–L₄) in Neandertal is more kyphotic than in H. sapiens. Our findings indicate that Neandertal posture is characterized by hypolordosis as a result of hyperkyphosis in the thoraco–lumbar spine. Hypolordosis is associated with a posterior shift of the rib cage, posterior pelvic tilt, a more vertical orientation of the sacrum, and short stride.

Stem hominine or hominid? The phylogeny and functional anatomy of Pierolapithecus catalaunicus.

D.R. Begun¹, C.V. Ward², A.S. Deane^1,2, T.L. Kivell¹, M.C. Nargolwalla¹, N.D.Taylor¹, ¹Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, ²Departments of Anthropology and Pathology and Anatomical Sciences, University of Columbia, Missouri.

The recent publication of Pierolapithecus catalaunicus (Moyà-Solà et al., 2005) raises interesting questions regarding great ape evolution. We compared published descriptions and photographs of Pierolapithecus to other Miocene and extant hominoids.

The I¹ and M³ of Pierolapithecus are strikingly similar to isolated specimens attributed to Dryopithecus fontani from La Grive, France. The dentition is similar to Dryopithecus specimens from Spain and Hungary, in terms of morphology and most proportions. Based on its photo, we consider the published reconstruction of Pierolapithecus face to be unlikely, given apparent damage to the specimen. Glabella appears to originally have been more anterior and the base of the nasal aperture is artificially elevated above the subnasal floor. An alternative reconstruction is presented here, testable by examination of the fossil. We present evidence from the vertebral column and phalanges that indicates well developed suspensory positional behavior.

Based on published data, we interpret Pierolapithecus to be a stem hominine distinct from samples currently attributed to Dryopithecus from Spain and Hungary. It is difficult to distinguish Pierolapithecus either from the type of Dryopithecus (D. fontani), a mandible, or the specimens from La Grive. It may be, given morphological similarities, and the fact that D. fontani is the same age (MN 7/8) and geographically close to Can Vila, that Pierolapithecus is synonymous with Dryopithecus. If so, one or more available nomena will need to be resurrected to distinguish MN 7/8 Dryopithecus from the morphologically different and more derived MN 9 taxa.

Supported by NSERC, OGS and NSF.

Serial coalescent simulations suggest weak genealogical relationships between Etruscans and modern Tuscans.

E.M.S. Belle¹, U. Ramakrishnan², J. Mountain², G. Barbujani¹. ¹Dipartimento di Biologia Università di Ferrara, Ferrara, Italy, ²Department of Anthropological Sciences, Stanford University, Stanford, California, USA.

The Etruscans, the only preclassical European population that has been genetically characterized so far, share only two haplotypes with their modern counterparts, the Tuscans, which, however, appear to be their closest living relatives.

We model ten demographic scenarios along the last 2,500 years and test by serial coalescent simulation whether any of them can account for the levels of internal genetic diversity observed in the Etruscan and modern Tuscan samples, and for their degree of genetic similarity. None of the five models in which the Etruscans are the direct ancestors of modern Tuscans is fully compatible with the observed data. On the contrary, the low level of allele sharing observed between the ancient and the modern samples is only obtained in simulations where those samples were extracted from independently-evolving populations, connected by little migration. A good correspondence between simulated and observed parameters is also obtained for a scenario in which the ancient samples come from a social elite, genetically differentiated from the bulk of the Etruscan population. In principle, these results may be due to factors such as a mitochondrial mutation rate much higher than currently believed, gross and systematic errors in the ancient DNA sequences, and failure to sample suitable modern individuals. If none of the above proves to be the case, the only possible conclusion of this study is that the Etruscans left very few or no mitochondrial descendants in the modern population of Tuscany.

The possible causes of porotic hyperostosis in Mesolithic Denmark.

P. Bennike. Laboratory of Biological Anthropology, Institute of Forensic Medicine, University of Copenhagen, Denmark.

In a study of Mesolithic skeletons from Denmark it has previously been reported that several skulls showed evidence of porotic hyperostosis (Meiklejohn and Zvelebil 1991). As the condition did not fit the classic pattern of this pathological changes in populations which are either heavily dependent on a cereal diet, suffer from malaria or live in an area with a high population density, the authors suggested that it could be attributed to fish tapeworms. This may seem to be a reasonable suggestion as C-13 results and the presence of fish bones have revealed that the Mesolithic population was heavily dependent on a marine diet.

The Danish Mesolithic skulls and skull fragments of 25 individuals have been re-examined in order to study both the presence and pattern of porotic hyperostosis. It showed that more than half of the skulls do have some porotic areas, but of various distribution and location. The study has revealed a different interpretation of the bone changes. Other possible causes are suggested such as growth and hypervascularity resulting in cranial vault thickening and in some of the cases the porotic areas are clearly related to healed traumas.

How standard are our standards? Inter-observer consistency in the construction of age intervals and the implications for broader anthropology.

G.E. Berg¹, E.H. Kimmerle². ¹Joint POW/MIA Accounting Command, Central Identification Laboratory, Hawaii, ²Department of Anthropology, University of South Florida

To estimate the age-at-death of skeletal remains, a suite of dental and osteological variables are routinely employed. Although various multi-trait methods have been suggested, differential method selection among investigators persists. The purpose of this investigation is multifocal: 1) compare the consistency of age-at-death estimation among observers for the independently scored data, and vise-versa; 2) investigate the criteria each investigator uses to construct age intervals; and 3) explore the “intangibles” or the “art” of age interval construction.

The investigation is based upon the data collected from a forensic collection of identified individuals originating from Kosovo. The sample was selected to incorporate all age categories for both males and females aged 17 to 60+ years. The methods included the Suchey-Brooks (1990) and Todd (1920, 1921) scoring systems for pubic symphyses, the Iscan et al. (1984) method for the sternal fourth rib end, and the Prince and Ubelaker (2002) equations for the Lamendin method for single rooted teeth. The Berg et al. (in press) method for aging older female pubic symphyses was employed for the study of females, where appropriate.

Statistical correlation between the investigators was moderately high for females (0.74) and lower for males (0.62). A trend to overestimate age was present for male individuals, whereas no apparent trend was present for females. Construction of the age-at-death intervals was greatly influenced by the results of each scoring method and the confidence each investigator had in a given method.

Hormones and body size evolution in papionin primates.

R.M. Bernstein¹, S.R. Leigh². ¹Department of Anthropology, Center for the Advanced Study of Hominid Paleobiology, George Washington University, ²Department of Anthropology, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

Ontogenetic studies focusing on humans and nonhuman primates reveal that an adult morphology can be produced through different developmental processes, generally involving differences in the rate or timing of somatic growth. We examine the evolution of size variation in papionin primates by measuring key growth regulating hormones during ontogeny (IGF-I, IGFBP-3, DHEAS, testosterone, estradiol), in order to assess which endocrine variables may be combined to result in a large or small adult body size, and whether or not different developmental processes can lead to similar body sizes. Importantly, because the papionin molecular phylogeny implies at least two episodes of size increase, this group offers an opportunity to determine whether or not similar endocrine profiles during growth regulate this apparent convergence. 583 serum samples from twelve papionin species were analyzed utilizing immunoassay techniques. Results show that comparable adult body size can be attained despite differences in levels of growth regulatory hormones during development. Additionally, this study demonstrates that absolute hormone levels during growth do not necessarily relate to adult size, contrary to the findings of previous research utilizing single species, with some smaller-bodied papionin species exhibiting higher growth related hormone levels than larger-bodied species. These results have important implications for understanding body size evolution in papionins in particular and primates in general.

A test of the transition analysis method for estimation of age-at-death.

J.D. Bethard. Department of Anthropology, The University of Tennessee.

Using criteria proposed in the Rostock Manifesto, Boldsen and coworkers (2002) present a new method for age-at-death estimation. Specifically, this method utilizes a scoring system that incorporates familiar morphological markers of the pubic symphysis, auricular surface and cranial sutures. The authors argue that the technique improves estimating age-at-death in older adults and no longer forces workers to use an open-ended interval such as 50+ years. In addition, the authors suggest that their approach of combining multiple components from several morphological structures helps control the variability of the aging process. While results achieved in their initial study are favorable, Boldsen et al. maintain that additional validation studies are needed.

This paper presents results of one such validation study. Data were collected from a sample of the William M. Bass Donated Collection (n=223) following Boldsen et al. (2002) protocol. Mean age-at-death for the sample was 60.1 years which proved ideal for testing the technique on individuals representing older age cohorts. Age-at-deaths estimates were generated and statistically compared to real age. Results indicate that the method was able to generate age-at-death estimates well above 50+ years. In some cases, generated ages were very close to real age, even in the eighth and ninth decades. Such results indicate that this technique can enhance age-at-death estimation and be of value to numerous physical anthropological contexts.

Sex-based differences in dental health and diet: the Toqua Site, eastern Tennessee.

T.K. Betsinger¹, M.O. Smith². ¹Department of Anthropology, The Ohio State University, ² Department of Anthropology, Loyola University of Chicago

Dental health can provide a strong inference about dietary variation. In a wide range of settings, differences in dental caries and other oral pathological conditions provide implications about male and female dietary behavior and quality of life. Generally, females show a higher prevalence of dental caries than males, suggesting a greater consumption of cariogenic foods. In this paper, we test the hypothesis that females will show a greater prevalence of dental caries than males in late prehistoric (Mississippian) maize agriculturalists from the Toqua site in eastern Tennessee.

Dental caries, antemortem tooth loss, and periodontal defects in the permanent teeth of 69 adults (35 males, 34 females) were documented. Statistical analysis of these data reveals no significant differences between adult males and females (chi-square; p<0.05). We interpret the overall similarity in frequency of pathology to indicate that oral health in general and diet in particular are not different between males and females. These results contradict most analyses in agricultural settings, especially in the American Southeast. On the other hand, analysis of other indicators of health (enamel hypoplasias, porotic hyperostosis, and periostitis) shows no differences in this series. Together, these results suggest that although there may have been a sexual division of labor, it did not impact diet and general health, at least as they are measured by these indicators.

Screening candidate genes for evidence of natural selection in Andean populations.

A.W. Bigham¹, X. Mao¹, L. Moore², M.D. Shriver¹. ¹Department of Anthropology, Pennsylvania State University, ²Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado at Denver.

The hypoxia inducible transcription factor (HIF) pathway, involved in oxygen homeostasis, regulates many of the physiological responses to high altitude habitation. Thus, genes involved in this pathway (as well as additional genes with purported high altitude adaptive mechanisms) are candidates for natural selection. Single nucleotide polymorphism (SNP) methods can be used to test such candidate genes, for evidence of natural selection. One approach is to assess the level of allele frequency differences between the study populations at SNPs located in the candidate genes in contrast to the empirical distribution of large numbers of SNPs throughout the genome using statistics like F_ST (Akey et al., 2002). SNPs from Edn1, Nos2a, Egln3 and Vegf genes in the HIF pathway were analyzed in a panel of Bolivian Aymara and Peruvian Quechua as well as low altitude control populations (Maya, Nahua, Africans, Europeans, Han Chinese and South Asians) for evidence of natural selection. Locus specific F_ST (lsF_ST) from HIF pathway SNPs was then compared to lsF_ST from a genome wide SNP dataset generated using the Affy 10K SNP mapping array to identify genes sharing strong of evidence of genetic adaptation. None of the HIF pathway SNPs showed evidence of natural selection among Aymara or Quechua based on lsF_ST methods. However, further analysis currently underway using haplotype based methods and heterozygosity may result in an alternate finding. These methods will be discussed in terms of the implications for this approach on searching for natural selection.

Beyond the letter of the law: fleshing out identity as a collaborative process.

S. J. Binkley, K.T. Blue. Department of Anthropology, Minnesota State University, Mankato.

The NAGPRA mandate requires federally funded institutions to assess cultural affiliation for remains thought to be of Native American origin. However, remains sometimes surface that call out for identification efforts beyond that required by law. It is not enough to identify sex, age and ancestry alone; one must make further efforts to identify an individual beyond these standards. In the spring of 2005, lab cleaning at Minnesota State University, Mankato led to the discovery of a tattered note card suggesting that a solitary skull, previously overlooked, was most likely of Native origin. Prior to its arrival at MSU, Mankato the skull had apparently been a museum display. The skull represents a probable male between 15-20 years of age. The adolescent evinces cribra orbitalia, possibly linked to iron-deficiency anemia. Ethnohistorical, archaeological, and osteological lines of evidence, including newspaper research, informal interviews, museum visits and literature investigation, suggest that the individual is of Native American ancestry and lived after 1860 A.D. This study identifies the responsibility that anthropologists may have in ameliorating past practices and suggests ways in which anthropologists may engage and collaborate with members of communities that have personal involvement in the goal of identification. Although to date the individual remains unidentified, the effort is ongoing. While fleshing out a specific identity may not be a matter of global import, small mysteries can help to put a personal face on anthropological research.

Locomotor behavior of Cercopithecus nictitans stampflii in the Tai National Park, Ivory Coast.

E.A. Bitty¹, W.S. McGraw². ¹Department of Zoology and Animal Biology, University of Cocody, Ivory Coast, ²Department of Anthropology, The Ohio State University, ^1,2Centre Suisse de Recherche Scientifique.

Stampfli’s putty-nosed monkey Cercopithecus nictitans stampflii is a poorly known, critically endangered guenon found discontinuously and at low densities from Liberia to Cameroon. Various authors have used competitive displacement by Diana monkeys (C. diana) to explain its sporadic distribution. C. nictitans stampflii is one of the largest, most dimorphic guenons and information on its locomotion can provide clues about the radiation and distribution of the clade’s members.

We studied the positional behavior of putty-nosed monkeys for 15 months in the Tai Forest. We used an instantaneous time point sampling regime to collect basic data on locomotion, posture and habit use and compared our results with data on the other Tai guenons, C. diana, C. campbelli and C. petaurista.

Although overall locomotion of C. nictitans stampflii (climb = 15.2%, leap = 10.4%, walk = 65.2%, run = 9.1%) is similar to that of the other Tai guenons (including Diana monkeys), its use of forest strata differs significantly from its congeners. Putty-nosed monkeys prefer main canopy layers during most activities, rarely descending to strata below the under-story. Over 80% of all locomotion occurred on boughs or branches; boughs are preferred for travel and branches are preferred for foraging. Relationships between locomotion and maintenance activities are consistent with results from other studies: climbing occurs more during foraging and leaping is more frequent during travel. Despite intense feeding competition, putty-nosed and Diana monkeys spend considerable time in association with each other, a phenomenon made possible by canopy segregation.

A cautionary tale: Alleged Asian palm burial remains prove not so Asian.

S. Blaylock, L. Baker, B.E. Hemphill. Department of Sociology & Anthropology, California State University, Bakersfield.

Recent removal of a palm tree yielded the remains of two individuals. Initial investigation by a forensic anthropologist determined the remains to be young adult females of Asian, specifically Chinese, descent. This conclusion wasn’t far-fetched, for the area was used as a Chinese cemetery from 1870 to 1950 located in Bakersfield, California. All of the remains were relocated in the mid-1950s, but looting led to loss of many headstones. Hence, it was likely that some remains were unintentionally left behind.

Further investigation yielded different results. Burial 1 was identified as a male African American who died between 44 and 49 years of age. Burial 2 was identified as a Caucasian male who died between 30 and 36 years of age. Such disparate results stimulated archival inquiry into the composition of the “Chinese cemetery.” The research revealed that, while dominated by individuals of Asian ancestry, the cemetery was also used by indigents regardless of ancestry. In addition to being African American, Burial 1 was marked by postcranial robusticity and may have been one of a number of African Americans employed as laborers for the local railroad. Burial 2, appears to have been autopsied, was accompanied by the remains of a coffin latch, and may be one of several individuals identified as “white, but of an alcoholic disposition, possibly Irish.” As such, this serves as a cautionary tale. Burials may not be as they initially seem. Investigators must use cautious consideration, not exclusively context, when forming conclusions about the identity of individuals, even those recovered from known historic cemeteries such as this one from Bakersfield.

Femoral shape in populations of differing subsistence economies.

M.M. Bleuze, J.L. Thompson. Department of Anthropology and Ethnic Studies, University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

Activity-related stresses and mechanical loadings have been demonstrated to affect adult bone morphology reflecting population differences in diet, mobility levels, and gender roles. For example, femoral diaphyseal geometry has been used to differentiate between mobility patterns of foragers and agriculturalists. When subsistence patterns are known, the assumption is that a particular pattern of lower limb morphology should result. However, research has shown that the relationship between diet, presumed activities, and bone geometry is not always straightforward. This study examines how well skeletal morphology correlates with presumed activity patterns in populations whose subsistence economy is known from archeological evidence. Three samples from populations that practiced: 1. coastal hunting, foraging and gathering; 2. maritime; and, 3. broad-based subsistence economies were used to collect data to calculate femoral shape and robusticity. The results reveal that when a subsistence economy is exclusively practiced and competing variables are controlled (e.g. terrain), limb morphology reflects activities patterns associated with that economy. However, when subsistence practices are broad-based bone geometry does not provide a clear pattern of activities and thus the archeological and skeletal data do not correlate strongly in these circumstances. Since bone geometry alone does not always reflect the subsistence economy (and vice versa), this finding is particularly relevant for studies of populations undergoing transition, such as from foraging to agriculture.

Quantitative genetics of female rhesus macaque age-specific reproductive output: Evidence for trade-offs and their implications.

G.E. Blomquist. Department of Anthropology, University of Illinois.

Trade-offs among components of fitness are fundamental to life history theory. Little is known about the genetic architecture of trade-offs, and thus how fitness costs and benefits accrue to individuals based on their reproductive decisions.

Using demographic records from 351 females completing their lives in the Cayo Santiago, PR colony, genetic correlations were calculated between reproductive output, the number of offspring born to a female, in early (3-5 yrs. old), middle (6-10), and late (11+) phases of life. To identify how correlations in reproductive output arise, the relationship between early fertility (3-7) and lifespan was also calculated for a subset of females (n=239) who lived 8+ years. Genetic analyses utilized an animal model and a pedigree of almost 8000 individuals having over 7000 maternal, and 200 paternal links. REML estimates of (co)variance components were generated with the program VCE. Parametric correlations were used.

In contrast to positive or ~0 phenotypic correlations for reproductive output at different ages, the genetic correlations indicate a strong trade-off between early and late life output. Furthermore, though the phenotypic correlation is also ~0, a strong negative genetic correlation between early fertility and lifespan indicates the early-late reproductive output correlation is predominantly due to earlier death of females who bear many offspring early in life.

These patterns support an antagonistic pleiotropy model for the evolution of senescence and imply constraints operative in primate life histories can be identified using long-term records that include pedigree information. Outlining morphological and socio-behavioral relationships to these reproductive constraints are directions for future inquiry.

Research supported by the U. Illinois Graduate College. Cayo Santiago and the Carribean Primate Research Center are NSF, NIH, and UPR funded facilities. Paternity data, used under agreement in this research, was gathered by John Berard, Fred Bercovitch, Matt Kessler, Michael Krawczak, Peter Nurnberg, and Jorg Schmidtke.

Sexual dimorphism and indicators of substrate preference: implications for fossil species.

K.T. Blue¹, B. Hallgrimsson². ¹Department of Anthropology, Minnesota State University, Mankato, ²Department of Cell Biology & Anatomy and the Joint Injury and Arthritis Research Group, Faculty of Medicine, University of Calgary.

Researchers have identified multiple indicators of locomotor pattern in cercopithecoids, as well as many other species of mammals. Indicators of terrestriality or arboreality in primates include height of the humeral head relative to the greater tuberosity, retroflection of the medial epicondyle of the humerus, length of the radial neck, posterior inclination of the olecranon, and length of the phalanges. Preliminary investigations suggest that allometric differences in the forelimbs of Old World monkeys related to sexual dimorphism may be a confounding factor in our estimation of locomotor pattern in fossil species of monkeys and apes. The generation of coefficients of variation (CVs) in a comparative sample of extant anthropoids produces very large CVs associated with radial neck length, particularly among cercopithecines. As neck length relative to radial head diameter is often used as an indicator of substrate preference or degree of cursorial activity in many mammals, further CVs were generated to ascertain if high degrees of variation also occur for this measure. As it also produced high CVs, means for males and females were then calculated to determine if the variation is related to sex differences. In two of the species, C. mitis and M. fascicularis, the differences are significant at the .05 level. Further calculations of other indices related to substrate preference produce similar results. These findings have significant ramifications for the assessment of substrate preference in fossil specimens, as well as taxonomic attribution. Additionally, these determinations may impact paleoecological models of habitat and assessments of number of species present.

Life history trade-offs in human growth.

B. Bogin, M.I.O. Varela-Silva.University of Michigan-Dearborn.

Human beings growing-up in adverse environments may be stunted, have asymmetric body proportions, be wasted, be overweight, and be at greater risk for disease. One group of researchers explains this as a consequence of “developmental programming” (DP). Another group uses the phrase “predictive adaptive response” (PAR). The DP group tends to view the alterations as having permanent maladaptive effects that place people at risk for disease (Barker, 1998). The PAR group considers the alterations at two levels of adaptation: 1) “short-term adaptive responses for immediate survival” and 2) “predictive responses required to ensure postnatal survival to reproductive age” (Gluckman & Hanson, 2005, p.68).

In a strict biological sense, adaptation is operationalized in terms of reproductive outcome. There is no consistent evidence that deviant growth trajectories impair or enhance fecundity or fertility. An application of life history theory to human growth rephrases the DP vs. PAR debate from disease or adaptation to the concept of “trade-offs.” “Trade-offs occur when two traits compete for materials and energy within a single organism…" or, "…when selection for one trait decreases the value of a second trait" (Stearns, 1992, p. 223). Human life history includes four stages of growth between birth and adulthood: infancy (birth to 36 months), childhood (3 to 7 years old), juvenile (7 years to puberty), and adolescent (puberty to about 20 years). Each of these stages is replete with trade-offs for growth and health. We present examples of trade-offs in growth of body proportions of Guatemalan and Cape Verdean children, juveniles, and adolescents and how these proportions relate to functional outcomes.

Leprosy in the medieval North.

J.L. Boldsen, U.H. Freund. Department of Anthropology (ADBOU), Institute of Forensic Medicine, University of Southern Denmark.

Leprosy was a widespread and dreaded disease in medieval Europe. It had reached Scandinavia by the Roman Iron Age (around AD 400). After a peak prevalence around AD 1300 the disease declined in frequency but remained of public health concern in parts of Scandinavia to well into the 20^th century.

This paper analyzes the relationship between leprosy prevalence in different parts of the North population from around AD 1000 to the Protestant Reformation in the first half of the 16^th century. Four different population segments are examined, the urban and the rural populations of South Scandinavia, and the more marginal populations of North Scandinavia and the Greenland North are analyzed.

It appears that leprosy was present in all of Scandinavia between AD 1000 and 1300. After 1300 the prevalence dropped quickly and dramatically in the urban communities of South Scandinavia, whereas it remained high to the 16^th century in the rural majority of the population in South Scandinavia. In North Scandinavia, leprosy appears to have been more prevalent among the Sámi than among the North population. It appears that leprosy did not establish a presence among the Greenland North in the early part of the settlement history; it might have appeared later in the history but no data with bearing on this have been analyzed so far.

The observed pattern of leprosy prevalence is discussed in the light of population dynamics and the economic development during the Middle Ages.

The impact of genetic ancestry testing on public understanding of race and human genetic structure.

D.A. Bolnick. Department of Anthropology, University of Texas at Austin.

Genetic ancestry testing has become a profitable commercial venture in recent years, and more than 20 private companies now sell genetic tests to help members of the general public reconstruct their personal genealogical histories. Since these companies discuss the pattern of human variation in their daily interactions with non-anthropologists, they can have a significant impact on how the public understands the structure of the human gene pool. In this presentation, I examine what these genetic ancestry tests convey about race, ethnicity, and human genetic structure.

While some aspects of genetic ancestry testing help to refute incorrect ideas about race, other aspects of these tests and the associated literature instead reinforce traditional racial notions about the genetic structure of human populations. In many cases, the pattern of human genetic variation is oversimplified and misrepresented. These tests often imply a greater correspondence between racial/ethnic groups and genetic markers than really exists, and the literature associated with some tests supports a traditional racial view of human population history. Many aspects of genetic ancestry testing therefore serve to reify race as a biologically meaningful representation of human variation. Finally, I also discuss the meaning and use of the term “ancestry” (in contrast to “race” or “ethnicity”) as associated with these tests.

Dental and skeletal maturation in wild great apes.

D. Bolter¹, A. Zihlman². ¹Dept. of Anthropology, Modesto College, ²Dept. of Anthropology, University of California, Santa Cruz.

Examination of dentition and skeleton of immature wild great apes (orangutans, n= 18; gorillas, n = 31; chimpanzees, n=28) reveals variation in patterns of growth and development. Individuals are classified into one of six dental ages, based on type and number of teeth emerged. On the same individuals, skeletal elements of the long bones and pelvis are scored according to degree of fusion (none, partial, full). Females and males are compared within a species, and each then compared across species.

Results show that chimpanzees and gorillas initiate skeletal fusion relative to dental stage earlier than do orangutans. In the pelvis and elbow for example, female chimpanzees and gorillas begin fusion at the same dental stage (age class 3, with second permanent molar (M2) emerged), whereas in female orangutans, the process occurs in age class 4 (denoted by permanent canine emergence). In African apes, pelvic fusion is completed later in males than in females, but at different dental ages, for example, gorillas are later than chimpanzees.

In all great apes, skeletal maturation occurs after all permanent teeth have emerged and suggests caution when using “adult” museum collections for wild primate baselines. For example, male gorillas with all permanent dentition and extensive tooth wear can have most skeletal elements still unfused. Using field measurements from these postcranial immatures to estimate wild body masses, for instance, under-estimates them.

The variation in timing and sequence of skeletal development within and between species reflects the life history pattern in each of these three great apes.

A reassessment of the age at death of Sts 14 (Australopithecus africanus) and the sequence of epiphyseal union of early hominids.

A. Bonmatí^1,2, C. Lorenzo^1,3, J.L. Arsuaga^1,2. ¹Centro UCM-ISCIII de Investigación sobre Evolución y Comportamiento Humanos, Madrid, Spain, ²Dpto. de Paleontología, Universidad Complutense de Madrid, Spain, ³ Grup d'Autoecologia Humana, Área de Prehistoria, Universitat Rovira i Virgili, Tarragona, Spain.

The present study attempts to establish a reliable age-at-death estimate for the Australopithecus africanus associated pelvis and vertebral column Sts 14. Originally considered to be an adult specimen by Robinson, more recent studies have suggested a subadult age at death for this individual. Our examination of the original specimen has revealed the presence of a small open suture along the iliac crest, an incipient ventral rampart, what appears to be a mostly unfused ischial tuberosity, S1-S2 unfused intervertebral disc, partial fusion of the sacroiliac epiphyseal plate and incomplete fusion of the annular rings of most of the preserved vertebrae. Considering that the A. africanus developmental rate more closely resembles that of chimpanzees than living humans, an age at death of 13-16 years for Sts 14 is suggested.

We have studied the sequence of epiphyseal union in other early hominid pelvic remains and compare this sequence with living great apes and modern humans to determine whether the early hominids were characterized by a distinct sequence of epiphyseal fusion in their pelvis. Interestingly, in SK 3155 (Paranthropus robustus) the fusion of the epiphysis of the anterior inferior iliac spine in the early hominids seems to be advanced with respect to the ossification of the triradiate cartilage. In addition, the sequence of epiphyseal union in Sts 14 appears to show a non-fused ischial tuberosity and an almost fused iliac crest. This condition in Sts 14 could be due to either a taphonomic process, or a change in the sequence of epiphyseal union.

Allometry and classification in Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorders, or, What happens when an allometric null hypothesis is true.

F.L. Bookstein, University of Vienna, University of Washington

Fetal Alcohol Spectrum Disorder (FASD) is a common birth defect (circa 1% in the US), centered on the brain, with devastating consequences for cognition and social behavior. The earlier in life these cases are diagnosed, in general, the better the outcome. Current developments in craniometrics have proved remarkably helpful for the neuromorphometrics of this related topic.

While our previous work focused on quantifying the corpus callosum midcurve, this report deals with the cerebellum. There is a strong pattern of cerebellar shape allometry in normal variation that, when tested against the corresponding pattern in FASD, appears to be “significantly supported” (i.e., the null hypothesis is TRUE) in comparisons of 120 Seattle FASD adolescents and adults to 60 subjects unexposed to prenatal alcohol. In other words, the size difference engendered by the syndrome adequately accounts for observed shape effects.

The role of shape is then to serve as a redundant source of information about the birth defect in this context, in which image processing is somewhat difficult and biological variability is exaggerated beyond the normal. Classification under these circumstances goes best by a third method, principal components of the size-shape spaces that our group introduced in 2004 for the considerably different topic of hominoid phylogenetics. The resulting example of “classification by allometry” may be of interest to physical anthropologists more broadly whose data sets likewise combine strong allometric signals with weak or variable residual effects.

Sponsored by grants AA010836 from the NIH to the University of Washington and P200.093/1-VI/2004 from the Austrian Council for Science and Technology to the University of Vienna.

DLX and anthropometric variation in children with oro-facial clefts.

E.J. Bowers. Anthropology Dept., Ball State University.

With the availability of the human genome sequence, molecular anthropology has developed to a point where classical anthropometry can start to be brought into conjunction with molecular data. Children with orofacial clefts have been shown to differ from unaffected children in their growth accomplishments in certain age ranges based on measurements of their heights. Studies of developmental genetics have shown that some anomalies once thought to have multifactorial etiologies are sometimes due to mutations in upstream developmental control genes which can have widespread downstream effects. This paper explores whether this might be the case with respect to the DLX genes or their control in children with clefts of the primary palate. DLX products appear to be involved in bifrications where single structures give rise to pairs as when the lateral facial processes grow out to form the jaws. My work on morphology in children with clefts has shown that they are slightly shorter than average after the age of seven, the expected age at andrearche. They have consistently significantly narrower elbow breadths, where the single humerus anlagen divides to form those of the radius and ulna. Children with clefts also frequently show deficits in the ulna styloid, and small carpals on one side of the hand, regions where further developmental bifrications occur. Here I review the evidence for a role for the products of the DLX loci in jaw formation and so possibly in clefting, as well as their reuse in more distil bifrications. I examine whether biacromial and bi-iliac breadths, collected on children attending the Cleft Palate Service of the Philadelphia (PA) Facial Reconstruction Center, support an hypothesis of a role for DLX product alteration in the formation of clefts of the primary palate.

Electromyography of peroneus longus in Varecia variegata and Eulemur rubriventor helps in grasping primate origins.

D.M. Boyer¹, B.A. Patel², S.G. Larson¹, J.T. Stern Jr.¹. ¹Department of Anatomical Sciences, Stony Brook University School of Medicine, ²Interdepartmental Doctoral Program in Anthropological Sciences, Stony Brook University.

The evolution of a foot specialized for strong grasping with an opposable hallux has been recognized as an important step in the evolution of euprimates. It may have allowed the earliest ‘primates’ to utilize resources previously unexploited in a fine-branch niche. Thus, paleontologists have studied osteological correlates of strong hallucal grasping with the goal of identifying this ability in fossil taxa. One character considered an indicator of such grasping is a large peroneal process on the hallucal metatarsal. Notably, this process is the sole insertion point of the peroneus longus muscle in nonhuman primates. Because the peroneus longus tendon crosses the tarsometatarsal joint, it is capable of adducting the hallux and is thought to be critical for strong hallucal grasping. However, this function in strong hallucal grasping has yet to be demonstrated. We used telemetered electromyography on two lemur species and found that peroneus longus is not frequently or consistently active during hallucal grasping. Further, it is never active without accompaniment of other muscles during such grasping. In contrast, extrinsic digital flexor muscles of the hallux are almost always intensely active in all grasping behaviors observed. Peroneus longus helps evert the foot, resists its inversion, and resists abduction of the hallux on large diameter horizontal substrates. We conclude that peroneus longus is not important in strong hallucal grasping and that strong adduction of the hallux is not necessarily a component of such grasping. These results have implications for the functional morphology of the foot in the earliest euprimates and plesiadapiforms.

Funded by NSF Grants BCS 0411489 and BCS 0509190.

Evolutionary genetics of primate hair pigmentation.

B.J. Bradley¹, J. Pastorini², N.I. Mundy¹. ¹Dept. of Zoology, University of Cambridge, UK, ²Centre for Conservation and Research, Rajagiriva, Sri Lanka.

Primates often show striking coat color differences between closely-related species, between individuals within populations, between males and females, and between infants and adults. These various color patterns undoubtedly play an adaptive role in signalling and/or concealment, but we know little about the genetic basis of this coat color diversity.

We are examining hairs from a range of primates (humans, apes, New and Old World monkeys, and prosimians) to identify where in the pigmentation pathway hairs of various colours diverge in their patterns of gene expression. Our candidate gene approach focuses on eight pigment-related genes (MC1R, ASIP, POMC, MGRN1, ATRN, TYR, TYRP1, DCT), selected because of their known involvement in determining coat colour in mice, one melanocyte marker gene (MITF) and one house keeping gene (ACTB). We extracted RNA from plucked hair tufts consisting of approximately 10-50 hair follicles each. Using quantitative RT-PCR, we measured and compared the relative amounts of RNA specific for each gene in hair tufts of different colours (white, buff, red, brown, black) from numerous individuals representing a variety of taxa. Preliminary data suggest, for example, that changes in gene expression in specific loci underlie the black coat of Goeldi’s monkey (Callimico goeldii). If confirmed, this would be a novel mechanism for evolutionary change in coat colour. Results will provide insights into how evolution tinkers with a limited amount of genetic variation to produce such a great diversity of forms.

Supported by the Biotechnology and Biological Sciences Research Council (8/G18344), UK.

The endocast of KNM-ER 42700 a new Homo erectus from Ileret, Kenya.

D.C. Broadfield¹, R.L. Holloway², F. Spoor³, M.G. Leakey⁴, L.N. Leakey⁴. ¹Departments of Anthropology and Biomedical Science, Florida Atlantic University; ²Department of Anthropology, NYCEP, Columbia University; ³Department of Anatomy and Developmental Biology, University College London; ⁴Department of Palaeontology, National Museums of Kenya.

The 1.5-1.6 Ma KNM-ER 42700 calvarium is a unique addition to known fossils in this time range from East Africa. While its general features show affinities to Homo erectus (including H. ergaster), it also possesses features that are similar to H. habilis (Spoor et al., 2005). This, though, may be attributed to the likelihood that the calvarium was from a subadult or young adult.

The calvarium is well-preserved with some distortion and a slight depression and hole anterior to the apex. Original estimates of the endocranial capacity gave a size of approximately 691-720ml, depending on the age of the individual. This would give KNM-ER one of the smallest cranial capacities of any fossil assigned to African H. erectus, albeit comparable to the endocranial volumes of Dmanisi and Mojokerto. However, past experience has demonstrated that deriving cranial capacity from CT images of a specimen with distortion is difficult. However, these problems can be overcome through the production of a stereolithograph derived from a 3-D composite of the CT images. This approach enables multiple casts to be created that can then be reconstructed to derive a more accurate assessment of endocranial capacity. Preliminary data indicate that KNM-ER 42700 is unique among H. erectus in its size, but overall possesses general affinities allying it with other members of this taxon.

Accumulating agent and paleoenvironment of the hominin-bearing site of Plovers Lake, South Africa.

J.K. Brophy¹, D.J. de Ruiter¹, S.E. Churchill², L.R. Berger³. ¹Department of Anthropology, Texas A&M University, ²Department of Biological Anthropology and Anatomy, Duke University, ³School of Geosciences, University of Witwatersrand.

A sample of faunal material from Middle Stone Age levels at the cave site of Plovers Lake, South Africa, was examined to assess accumulating agent and paleoenvironment. Bone surface modification, bone breakage patterns and skeletal part representation, along with the presence of numerous coprolites, suggest significant carnivore involvement. Rodent gnawed bones are rare, indicating limited input from this agent. Hammerstone percussion- and cut-marked bones combine with the presence of tools of an MSA character to indicate some hominin contribution, though at a low frequency. Commingling of carnivore and hominin modified remains suggests either short-term, episodic utilization by the hominins, or perhaps seasonal occupation of the site.

The majority of the fauna are representatives of extant taxa, most of which are historically known from the area. Carnivores are particularly diverse, with more limited primate representation. Examination of the ungulate fauna provides information on paleocommunity structure and paleoecology. There is a distinct preponderance of grazers, in particular those preferring open grassland habitats. Water dependent taxa dominate the ungulates, and coupled with the presence of aquatic species such as water mongoose and Cape clawless otter, suggest a permanent water source nearby. The greater part of the ungulate fauna are taxa which are characterized by at least some seasonal mobility, which has implications for interpretations of seasonal occupation in the area.

Darwin, Darwinism, and the speciation process.

K. Brown, M. Cartmill. Dept. of Biological Anthropology and Anatomy, Duke University.

Pre-Darwinian biologists conceived of species as natural classes defined by essential properties. Nowadays, species are often thought of as logical individuals that are born and die in swift, transforming speciation events, in which reproductive isolation is achieved by the restructuring of a peripheral population's genome. But except in cases of instantaneous speciation through polyploidy (which is rare among animals and almost unknown among mammals), reproductive isolation and the mechanisms that maintain it can only be produced by natural selection, drift, and other evolutionary processes within populations. Darwinian theory therefore leads us to expect that reproductive isolation should as a rule come into existence gradually. Darwin himself argued at length that reproductive isolation admits of degrees, that interspecies gene flow is widespread and often significant, and that "there is no fundamental distinction between species and varieties." Later studies have borne out these contentions. We suggest that currently prevailing philosophies of systematics encourage paleoanthropologists to contrive overly precise alpha taxonomies that misrepresent the inherently vague boundaries of evolving populations.

 
The reliability of the atd angle in dermatoglyphic analysis.
 
E.K. Brunson1, D.J. Holman1, L.L. Newell-Morris1, C.M. Giovas1, A. Streissguth2. 
1Dept. of Anthropology, University of Washington, 2Dept. of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, University of Washington.
 
 The atd angle is a dermatoglyphic trait formed by drawing lines between the triradii below the second and fifth digits and the most proximal triradius on the hypothenar region of the palm. The trait has been widely used in dermatoglyphic studies, but several researchers have questioned its utility, specifically whether or not it can be measured reliably. Here, we examine the measurement reliability of this trait. Finger and palm prints were taken using the carbon paper and tape method from 287 individuals with in utero exposure to alcohol and 175 unexposed controls. A sample of 100 matched (right and left) prints was randomly selected from the total. Each atd angle was read twice, at different times, by Reader 1, using a goniometer and a magnifying glass, and three times by Reader 2, using Adobe Photoshop. Inter-class correlation coefficients were estimated for the intra- and inter-reader measurements.
 Reader 1 was able to quantify the atd angle on 149 out of 200 prints (74.5%), and Reader 2, on 179 out of 200 prints (89.5%). Both readers agreed on whether or not an angle was measurable on a print 89.8% of the time for the right hand and 78.0% for the left hand. Intra-observer correlations were 0.97 or greater for both readers. Inter-observer correlations for atd angles measured by both readers ranged from 0.92 to 0.96. Our results suggest that the atd angle can be measured reliably, and that angles measured using an angle measurement tool on a digital image improves reliability.
Supported by NIH NIAAA R21-AA013704 and R37 AA01455.

An eye for an eye: the Anglo-Saxon execution cemetery at Walkington Wold.

J.L. Buckberry. Dept. Archaeological Sciences, University of Bradford, UK.

The cemetery at Walkington Wold, East Yorkshire, UK was located around a Bronze Age barrow, and contained twelve burials in various positions, many of whom were buried without their heads. In addition, eleven isolated skulls were excavated. At the time of excavation (1969), the burials were interpreted as victims of a massacre that occurred in the 5^th century AD (Bartlett and Mackey 1973), however more recently the site was re-interpreted as an Anglo-Saxon execution cemetery, of which examples are known from southern England (Reynolds 1997).

The cemetery contains a minimum of thirteen individuals, however only two of those were buried with their heads articulated with their bodies. Radiocarbon dates revealed that the cemetery was in use from the late 7^th to early 11^th centuries AD, and thus it is the most northern Anglo-Saxon execution cemetery identified to date. During this period burial was typically supine and extended, usually without grave goods and cemeteries were increasingly located around churches (Hadley and Buckberry 2005), quite unlike Walkington Wold.

Re-analysis of the skeletal remains showed that the assemblage consisted entirely of adult males, all of whom died between the ages of 18 and 45. Osteological evidence of execution by decapitation was present on six individuals, supporting the theory that these burials were of executed felons. This paper will present the palaeopathological evidence from the cemetery, and will interpret it in the context of normal late Anglo-Saxon burial practices.

Funded by the Universities of Sheffield, York and Leeds (White Rose Studentship to JLB), and the Natural Environment Research Council (radiocarbon dates).

High inbreeding coefficient in an Indo-Costa Rican group.

K. Bueter, L. Madrigal. Department of Anthropology, University of South Florida, Tampa.

The topic of inbreeding has received attention from anthropologists because inbreeding might impact a population’s level of genetic variation. Anthropologists are particularly interested in the inbreeding coefficients of small, isolated populations. In this paper, we report data on the inbreeding coefficient of a small ethnic group which has remained reproductively isolated until recently.

Since 2003 a team of cultural and biological anthropologists has been working with a group which descends from East Indian migrants in Limón, Costa Rica. We have complete genealogies of all individuals who belong to this group. We computed the inbreeding coefficient for each of these genealogies using the computer package DESCENT, kindly provided by Ed Hagen. Using the individual genealogies, we have obtained very high inbreeding coefficients: for two families, we have a 0.05 alpha. Reid (1973) lists several populations with this level of inbreeding, including several from India, the Hutterites, etc. We are working with our cultural anthropologist to link all of the genealogies into one, to better obtain a measure of α.

Our genealogical work shows that whereas this group remained isolated in previous generations, it has lowered its reproductive boundaries. Indeed, several of our subjects bemoan what they see as the inevitable disappearance of their group. Our genealogical data indicate that opening up the group to individuals from other ethnicities was inevitable, as the level of consanguinity was very high.

Child anthropometric comparison of two rural Costa Rican communities.

H.M. Bukauskas¹, D. Himmelgreen¹, N. Romero Daza¹, M. Vega¹, H.B. Cambronero². ¹Department of Anthropology, University of South Florida, ²Monteverde Institute, Apdo.

The Monteverde region of Costa Rica has been increasingly effected by globalization changes over the last 30 years. Anthropometric and socioeconomic data were collected from the region in two settlements. The communities differ socio-economically, one relying mainly on traditional agriculture, the other having made a transition to ecotourism. However, both communities are food-insecure.

The purpose of this paper is to determine if boys and girls are experiencing differently the process of nutritional change associated with their incorporation into the globalized market. The data cover information from 148 female participants (≥ 18) who were caretakers in a household of at least one child (age 7-12). For this paper, the main focus is that of the anthropomentric records of the children living in the households surveyed. The samples of boys and girls are comparable for age and sample size. Because the variances of both samples were not homogeneous, a t-test for unequal sample variances was performed. Our results indicate that boys and girls do not differ significantly for height ( t= -0.54, df=137, p= 0.5893) and weight ( t= -0.84, df= 138, p= 0.4047). Further analysis within the paper include comparisons between the two communities, and of adult and child anthropometrics.

Differential selective pressures at the CD36 locus among primates.

C.M. Bullard, M.E. Steiper. Department of Anthropology, Hunter College of the City University of New York.

The CD36 protein plays a role as a scavenger receptor and in cellular adhesion. This protein has also been shown in vitro to be a major receptor of the P. falciparum antigen PFEMP1. Studies have identified regions of CD36 that are specifically involved in the adhesion of Plasmodium parasites. Malaria, caused by members of the Plasmodium genus, is a major selective pressure in humans. Aside from humans, many other primate species harbor Plasmodium parasites. Here we examine the CD36 gene across a range of primates in order test for evidence of differential selective pressures on the distinct functional domains of this locus. Two main results are supported. First, there is evidence for differential selective pressures operating on the different functional regions of CD36. Second, different primate species show evidence for different types of selection. These results suggest that primates may be evolving to combat their Plasmodium parasites through modification of CD36. Additional explanations, based on the other functions of the CD36 protein, will also be explored.

A 3D morphometric analysis of Upper Palaeolithic hominin frontal bones from Russia and the North Caucasus.

E. Bulygina¹, L. Aiello². ¹Anthropology Department, University College London, ²Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research

Claims have been made in literature that some of the Upper Paleolithic hominin fossils from Russia and the North Caucasus (e.g., Skhodnya, Podkumok and Khvalynsk) have Neanderthal features that may be representative of Neanderthal ancestry. This hypothesis is tested using 3D morphometric semi-landmark analysis and a comparative sample comprising 94 modern human and 26 Upper Pleistocene hominin (including 12 Upper Palaeolithic Homo sapiens and 9 Nenaderthal) frontal bones. The results do not support the hypothesis that Neanderthal features characterize these fossils. Rather, a distinctive suite of features separates Skhodnya and Khvalynsk from both the Neanderthals and modern humans. These features include a posterior position of bregma in relation to the stephanion resulting in a triangularly shaped coronal suture when viewed superiorly, a distinctive bregmatic and supraglabellar flattening and a relatively narrow supraorbital and temopral region. At the same time, some of the other Upper Paleolithic individuals in our comparative sample, such as Dolni Vestoniče and the Pavlov hominins, are characterised by relatively narrow and curved frontal bones when compared with modern humans, Neanderthals and the Upper Paleolithic hominins from Russia and North Caucasus. These results demonstrate that there is greater variation in frontal bone morphology in Upper Palaeolithic hominins than previously appreciated.

Are minor morphological variants indicative of developmental instability?

S.E. Burnett. Department of Anthropology, Arizona State University.

Developmental instability is the result of perturbations of normal development from its course in producing a particular phenotype. Typically it is measured through the assessment of fluctuating asymmetry, defined as minor random deviations from symmetry in structures that normally exhibit bilateral symmetry. Increased fluctuating asymmetry has been linked to major congenital defects, syndromes, and inbreeding, among other factors. Rare minor morphological variants have also been suggested to reflect developmental instability due to the elevated rates of some variants in association with syndromes and congenital defects. The purpose of this study is to examine the relationship between post-cranial skeletal asymmetry and minor developmental variants of the human skeleton and dentition. Specifically this study tested the hypothesis that individuals with three or more independent variants exhibit significantly more skeletal asymmetry than individuals without skeletal/dental variants.

Thirty-six developmental variants from the skeleton and dentition were examined in the skeletons of 502 South African Bantu adults. In addition, 15 skeletal measurements were taken bilaterally to assess skeletal asymmetry. Measurements consisted of long bone lengths calculated for the metacarpals, metatarsals, humerus, ulna, radius, femur, and tibia. F tests (alpha = 0.05) were used to test for increased skeletal asymmetry in individuals with three or more independent variants relative to individuals without developmental variants.

Individuals with three or more variants did not have significantly greater skeletal asymmetry when compared to individuals without variants. These results suggest that developmental instability is not strongly related to the occurrence of multiple minor variants.

A bioarchaeological perspective on health, violence, and identity at Tchecar (AD 700-900), northern Chile.

J.D. Burns, K.M. Eckhoff, C. Torres-Rouff. Department of Anthropology, Colorado College

The San Pedro oases are located in the Atacama Desert of northern Chile. We examined 193 individuals from Tchecar (AD 700-900), a site occupied during a time of peace and affluence in the Atacama. Bioarchaeological data was collected regarding overall health and body modifications in order to assess quality of life during this prosperous time as compared to later, tumultuous, periods.

Our analyses show that cranial modification parallels that in contemporary cemeteries, with the presence of both of the major Andean forms and nearly a third of the population modified (63/193). We observed low rates of nutritional deficiencies (cribra orbitalia: 3/193; porotic hyperostosis: 1/193; enamel hypoplasia: 11/155) demonstrating access to a broad range of foods and a balanced diet. In contrast, dental health data show high rates of caries (100/190) and dental wear. Together with the very high rate of antemortem tooth loss in adults (148/161), this suggests high consumption of carbohydrates and foods ground with mortar and pestle. These data are in keeping with the idea that Atacameños practiced agriculture and pastoralism. Cranial trauma was centered on the nasal bones and was present in about 10% of the sample, all adults (21/193), suggesting that face-to-face confrontations, primarily between men, were a focus of violence in this society. These data reveal a population that was in good health outside of their dentition, especially compared to individuals from subsequent periods, and was well integrated into cultural practices of the time.

Supported by the Venture and Jones Funds, Colorado College.

Cranial suture morphology: understanding how dietary strategy and brain size influence primate craniofacial bone growth.

C.D. Byron¹, M. Hamrick², J. Yu¹. ¹Department of Surgery, Medical College of Georgia, ²Department of Cell Biology & Anatomy, Medical College of Georgia.

Morphological variation in the craniofacial complex is useful for determining phylogeny as well as interpreting feeding behavior. However, some features are present due to the spatial consequences of altering inherited craniofacial characteristics either by changing the size of nervous system structures (optic, auditory, olfactory, brain) or by sexual dimorphism. Within cranial sutures, we have shown a form-function link between complexity and dietary strategy required through ecological niche specialization. Experimental mouse data demonstrate a positive relationship between masticatory muscle mass / function and suture lines of greater complexity. This is repeated by assessing sagittal suture morphology within a comparative primate sample. It is hypothesized that brain expansion and sexual dimorphism within the cranial vault and the material properties of an organisms’ food preferences influence suture morphology. This is accomplished using a large sample of primates that have been measured with respect to general dietary preferences, sagittal suture complexity, sagittal crest presence, estimated temporalis attachment area, estimated cranial capacity, and mandibulo-dental dimensions. Cebus species subsisting on diets of differing material toughness (C. apella vs. C. albifrons) show changes in such morphologic variables as mandibular corpus cross-sectional area (P<0.001), mandibular ramus area (P<0.001), mandibular symphyseal cross-sectional area (P<0.001), molar occlusal surface (P<0.001), temporalis attachment area lateral to temporal line/sagittal crest (0.001), presence of temporal line/sagittal crest, and complexity of the sagittal suture (P<0.05). It can be concluded thus far that obdurate foods and increased muscle function help direct bone formation within the mandible and cranium of primate and mouse models.

This research was funded by a generous dissertation improvement from the National Science Foundation (NSF 0352512).

South American population genetic structure and history: the Y perspective.

G.S. Cabana¹, P.W. López², A. Cáceres², B. Lizárraga², A.C. Stone¹. ¹School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, ²Centro de Investigación de Bioquímica y Nutrición, Universidad Nacional Mayor de San Marcos.

This study addresses the paternal genetic structure and history of South American peoples using data from the nonrecombining portion of the Y chromosome (NRY). Early characterizations of the continent’s genetic structure assumed high heterogeneity among populations. Recent characterizations hypothesize an east-west continental divide in genetic variation, with the west (i.e., Central and Southern Andean populations) being considerably more undifferentiated and homogenous than the east (i.e., Amazonian populations). Researchers have proposed various explanations to account for observed patterns, including initial migratory “waves” into the continent, population expansions, and/or regional differences in effective sizes and gene flow. Unfortunately, relatively limited sampling of the continent’s peoples has resulted in a still-obscure picture of the continent’s actual genetic structure, as well as the demographic and historical reasons for that structure.

To further investigate the male ancestry of native South American populations, we sampled ca. 150 males from five Native American populations from the Peruvian Andes. We examined twenty biallelic and nine microsatellite NRY polymorphisms, determined Y haplogroup- and haplotype-based lineages, and estimated within-lineage diversities. We found a high frequency of Q-M3 (~80%), no C, and a low frequency of R-M207 (~15%) lineages. The haplogroup distribution and diversity of male lineages among these and other published data support the hypothesis of an east-west geographic difference in male ancestry and/or evolutionary trajectories. We additionally address the still-debated issues of New World male founder lineages, as well as the timing and number of migrations into South American and into the New World in general.

Use of modern Arctic peoples in modeling past behaviors.

S. Cachel. Department of Anthropology, Rutgers University.

Archaeologists rightly hesitate to use any living human group as a referential model for past human behavior: using living humans as replicas for extinct people, and reconstructing minute details of behavior. Nevertheless, modern Arctic peoples allow one to understand the selection pressures that mold human adaptation to extreme environments. Cold environments affect survivorship and health, and constrain population growth. Selection pressures operate through the general impact of high latitude, increased caloric intake, a rise in basal metabolic rate, and diets where carbohydrates are absent or seasonally rare. Sunlight is seasonally restricted, affecting calcium metabolism and vitamin D synthesis. It is necessary to engineer technology (clothing, shelter, and control of fire) to minimize cold exposure. Social organization and ranging and foraging strategies respond dynamically to this array of selection pressures.

Modern Arctic peoples may also yield insights into the way of life of fossil humans. If one assumes that biological substrates are similar, Arctic peoples could offer a template for the possibilities of the behavioral adaptations of fossil humans to cold environments. The first dispersal of genus Homo into temperate latitudes was associated with an ability to adapt to greater cold and seasonality than in tropical latitudes. Neanderthals existing in cold Eurasian environments are another fossil taxon whose behavioral adaptations might be explored through the use of a modern Arctic template, especially because data on stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes in collagen from multiple specimens shows that they lived in open habitats, and had a highly carnivorous diet (Bocherens et al. 2005. J. Hum. Evol. 49:71-87).

Subadult sex estimation from the auricular surface of the ilia.

A.K. Cahoon. Department of Anthropology, California State University, Sacramento.

The determination of sex from subadult skeletons has long been thought to be a difficult if not impossible task, though many anthropologists have endeavored to identify sexually dimorphic traits in these skeletons. Weaver (1980) identified the elevation of the auricular surface as a sexually dimorphic trait in fetal and infant individuals below the age of six months, with females expressing a raised auricular surface and males a flat auricular surface. This study suggests a revised method for scoring auricular surface elevation, utilizing a five point ordinal scale to account for ranges in elevation. The reliability of this method for determining the sex of subadults is tested using thirty six individuals, from birth through age six, from the known age and sex sample from Christ Church, Spitalfields. Both the left and right auricular surfaces were scored separately and the test was repeated to determine the amount of intraobservor error and learning curve. Accuracies for the separate observations ranged between approximately 60 and 80 percent with accuracy increasing in the later observations, which indicated that a learning curve does exist for this method. Expansion of the methodology to a five point ordinal scale showed an increased accuracy of the method in individuals after birth, as compared to Weaver (1980). In addition, this study indicates that the methodology is applicable to subadult individuals of a broader age range.

Growth patterns in adverse environments.

N. Cameron. Centre for Human Development and Ageing, Department of Human Sciences, Loughborough University, UK.

The triple-logistic pattern of human growth in linear dimensions is probably one of the most recognisable models within human biology. The fact that post-natal somatic growth occurs in three phases (infancy, childhood, adolescence) creates opportunities for the individual expression of this genetically controlled, but environmentally modified, phenomenon. The impact of the environment works to alter the duration and intensity of critical stages within the total process resulting in individual patterns that can differ radically from the general pattern. However, the constancy of the general pattern is so fixed that its presence in children is taken as a reflection of good health. Departures from that pattern are recognised as reflecting ill health. Thus reference charts of normal growth patterns have become part of the essential armamentarium of the pediatrician and community health worker and are used to rapidly identify children with either chronic or acute constraints upon their growth and, by implication, their health. Whilst the cessation of growth in response to an acute attack is uniformally dramatic the gradual response to chronic adverse stimuli is less easily predicted and interpreted. For example, in chronic scenarios the loss of centile position that precedes the eventual establishment of normal increments can be viewed as either a poor or a good growth response, as either maladaptive or adaptive, as either poor health or good health. This paper reviews such growth patterns in urban South African children exploring the relationship between environment and growth outcome.

Is there a scientific “theory” of Intelligent Design?

R.J. Cameron. DePauw University.

Philosophical challenges to evolution have long charged that evolution begins from a biased and unmotivated conception of science which rules creationism and intelligent design out of court by fiat rather than on the basis of reason or evidence. The most recent form of this objection, championed among others by philosophical powerhouse Alvin Plantinga, alleges that a philosophically baseless connection between science and methodological naturalism – roughly the avoidance of appeal to supernaturalistic or agentive explanation in the sciences – is at the root of objections to there being a “scientific” creationism, e.g., as proposed by the intelligent design movement.

While many capable respondents have already challenged this claim, my brief presentation aims to present a crisp response. I will diagnose both the impoverished conception of science which undergirds intelligent design’s claims to scientific status and articulate how a and why richer conceptions of science, one adequate to describing not just evolution but also physics, chemistry, and the other sciences, rules out explanatory appeals to the supernatural.

Age-related changes in urinary gonadotropins among Turkana men of northern Kenya.

B.C. Campbell¹, P.W. Leslie², K.L. Campbell³. ¹Department of Anthropology, Boston University, ² Department of Anthropology, University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill, ³Department of Biology, University of Massachusetts-Boston.

Recent findings demonstrate widespread population variation in age-related testosterone decline among human males, suggestive of differences in reproductive function. However, little is known about population variation in gonadotropins and their potential determinants. In order to characterize age-related changes in the male reproductive axis, we analyzed urinary FSH and LH and estrone-3-glucuronide (E3G) and their relationship to anthropometric measures from 134 nomadic and 102 settled Turkana males, ages 20+. Earlier results suggest that the nomadic men are in negative energy balance, while settled men are in positive energy balance after a long drought.

Results indicate low levels of urinary LH and elevated levels of E3G compared to U.S. standards, while urinary levels of FSH are elevated only among the settled males. GLM models indicate significant effects of 10 year age groups and nomadic vs. settled residence on LH, but there are no significant age-related changes in urinary FSH. E3G increased significantly with age among the settled males only.

These results suggest that environmental fluctuation may have an important impact on male reproductive function. The age-related increase in E3G among settled men is similar that of western populations who also exhibit positive energy balance. Furthermore, the increased levels of FSH suggest increased stimulation of Sertoli cells with weight gain after a period of weight loss. More work is needed to determine if such increases in FSH can be linked to other aspects of testicular function as well.

This work supported by NSF grants DBS 92-07837 and 92-07891.

Static allometry, species discrimination and sexual dimorphism of guenons (Primates, Cercopithecinae): a three-dimensional morphometric analysis of the skull.

A. Cardini¹, P. O’Higgins², S. Elton¹, ¹Hull York Medical School, University Of Hull, Cottingham Road, Hull, HU6 7RX, UK, ²Hull York Medical School, University of York, Heslington, York, YO10 5DD, UK.

It is often assumed that morphological variation in guenons (Allenopithecus, Chlorocebus, Cercopithecus, Erythrocebus, Miopithecus) is relatively modest compared to other cercopithecine monkeys. However, comparative analyses investigating the morphology of most living species are uncommon. In this study, the form of the skull is analysed using three-dimensional anatomical landmark coordinates of 1237 specimens belonging to all species of guenons (except C. dryas). Males are on average 12-14% larger than females, and shape sexual dimorphism is evident and largely correlated to size differences. Interspecific differences in size are large and, unsurprisingly, allometric shape discriminates the smallest (M. ogouensis and M. talapoin) and the largest (E. patas) species. A very clear discrimination, using non-allometric shape variation, was, in contrast, less easy to predict for C. aethiops, whose morphological and genetic similarities with representatives of Cercopithecus has led several taxonomists to question its generic status. Similarity relationships are also investigated using species average shapes with separate sexes. Clusters are fairly congruent with traditional taxonomic groupings but often mirror size similarities and can thus be homoplasic. However, percentages of specimens correctly identified according to species using discriminant analyses (skull shape, separate sexes) suggest that size-related morphological convergence may be present but it is not large enough to prevent species discrimination. The correlation between the matrices of shape distances for the female and male average shapes is very high. Thus, despite a strong sexual dimorphism, similar interspecific phenetic relationships are suggested by females and males. This congruence is likely to be related to the modest divergence of static allometric trajectories (adults, pooled sexes) of most species.

Arboreal locomotion from a different angle: external forces during quadrupedalism with abducted limb postures.

K.J. Carlson. Anthropologisches Institut und Museum, Universität Zürich-Irchel.

Arboreal primates traverse three-dimensional settings in which substrates and superstrates are positioned irregularly. As a consequence, they adopt a variety of limb postures during locomotion, often abducting limbs at proximal joints. Studies of external forces experienced by primates during simulated arboreal locomotion, however, typically examine a limited subset of the locomotor diversity that can be observed among free-ranging counterparts. While comparisons of arboreal and terrestrial linear locomotion have demonstrated that primates experience lower external forces during arboreal locomotion, likely due to compliant gait (i.e., greater limb flexion), the mediolateral (ML) component of the substrate reaction force (SRF) may reflect the degree of limb abduction (i.e., greater during terrestrial linear locomotion).

To investigate this, SRFs and the degree of limb abduction at shoulder and hip joints were recorded for 390 limb contacts of lemurids (Eulemur rubriventer). Individuals traveled along a wooden runway or linear pole, each with an instrumented segment, and the same pole, but with the instrumented section offset from the longitudinal axis of the pole. As the amount of offset increased, ML peak force magnitudes increased. At the greatest offset, magnitudes and directions of ML peak forces were similar to those observed during runway locomotion, despite a slower average speed. When the instrumented segment was offset to any degree, SRFs usually were medially-directed, unlike laterally-directed forces that have been observed during simulated arboreal locomotion on a linear pole. Mediolateral peak force magnitudes experienced during arboreal locomotion can be high, even exceeding those experienced during terrestrial locomotion.

Research supported by the National Science Foundation (BCS 0411489).

Bone cell dynamics of the premaxillary bone and its sutures.

K.A. Carmody¹, M.P. Mooney^2,3, G.M. Cooper⁴, C.J. Bonar⁵, M.I. Siegel³, T.D. Smith^1,3. ¹School of Physical Therapy, Slippery Rock University, ²Departments of Oral Medicine and Pathology, ³Anthropology, and ⁴Orthopedic Surgery, University of Pittsburgh, ⁵Cleveland Metroparks zoo.

The premaxilla (Pmx) and its articulations have played a pivotal role in theories of tooth homology and the etiology of facial clefting. The present study examines evidence of bone cell activity in serially sectioned and stained slides from the heads of perinatal or infant callitrichids (2 Callithrix jacchus, 2 Leontopithecus rosalia, and 5 Saguinus geoffroyi). Sections were examined microscopically regarding the distribution of osteoclasts and osteoblasts along the osseous boundaries of the Pmx and its sutures with adjacent bones. Selected specimens were immunohistochemically evaluated for the distribution of osteopontin (OPN), which facilitates osteoclast binding.

In all species, most of the alveolar margins were OPN (+) with osteoclasts. Most other regions of the Pmx were osteoblastic in newborn Saguinus, or devoid of bone cell activity in Callithrix and Leontopithecus. OPN immunoreactivity and bone cell distribution revealed evidence of bone resorption along the margins of the body and nasomaxillary process of the Pmx, but only where it formed an osseous boundary of the anterior nasal opening. The maxillopremaxillary suture (MPS) and nasopremaxillary suture was osteoblastic in newborn and infant Saguinus. These sutures were devoid of bone cells in Callithrix and Leontopithecus, except adjacent to the canine region of the maxillary bone in Leontopithecus. The present study suggests some perinatal Pmx growth in all three callitrichids, but also local resorption that varied according the adjacency to the nasal fossa or maxillary canines. Although consistent with the view of sutures as passive growth sites, these findings illustrate species differences in perinatal osteoblast activity, particularly at the MPS.

What failed communication attempts tell us about the mind of the signaler; gestural communication in captive Bornean orangutans (Pongo pygmaeus).

E.A. Cartmill, R.W. Byrne. School of Psychology, University of St Andrews.

The study of non-human gesture is hindered by the difficulty of determining when an animal is signaling. Unlike vocalizations, gestures lack clear boundaries and overlap with other movements of daily living, so it is hard to tell when the function of a movement is mainly communicative. Nonhuman gestures can be identified as such by recipients’ responses, however this approach fails to capture the complexities of the use of multiple gestures in a single signaling event - and, more importantly, includes no measure of the signaler’s intentions. To address these problems, we examined gestural bouts made by 9 captive Bornean orangutans to conspecific recipients who failed to respond in any way. Our study focused on what alternative behaviors signalers exhibit in cases where initial communicative attempts have failed. When a recipient does not respond, gestures can be recognized by subsequent repetition or patterned modifications of the signal. Such modifications provide information about the signaler's goal and awareness of the recipient's attentive state. String lengths ranged from 2-9 gestural elements. The probability of a signaler performing another gesture in a string increased from the 1st gesture until the 4th gesture. Beyond that, the probability of giving up and ending the sequence began to increase. The time between gestures decreased as the number of items in the sequence increased. When recipients did not respond to gesturing, signalers sometimes touched recipients and/or moved closer to them or into their visual fields. These findings indicate that orangutans have specific intended results for some of their gestures.

Species taxa, characters, and symplesiomorphies.

M. Cartmill¹ and T. Holliday², ¹Dept. of Biological Anthropology and Anatomy, Duke University Medical Center, ²Department of Anthropology, Tulane University.

Mayr’s “Biological Species Concept” bases all species distinctions on the absence of a single shared character – the ability to interbreed. Yet the ability to interbreed is a plesiomorphic character, and thus we should not be surprised to find it shared between taxa that have diverged in other respects. Many mammalian groups definable as separate species on the basis of morphological, genetic, ecological or behavioral apomorphies retain the ability to interbreed with each other. Interfertility is not an all-or-nothing condition; rather, there is a continuum from taxa that are completely interfertile, through those with reduced fertility, those where only male hybrid offspring are sterile (Haldane’s Rule), and those where few hybrid offspring are ever fertile, to taxa which cannot or do not interbreed. A survey of interspecific hybrids reveals that complete reproductive isolation is relatively slow to evolve among eutherians. In our sample of 86 intertaxic crosses involving species with generation lengths of ca. 4-5 years, the minimum time required for complete reproductive isolation was 1.4 My. "Bushy" classifications of the Hominina, which posit many paleospecies becoming reproductively isolated from each other over much shorter periods, seem correspondingly improbable. We follow Jolly (2001) in viewing hominin paleospecies as allotaxa, some of which may have at times exchanged genes. This shift represents an important theoretical breakthrough for paleoanthropology.

Skeletal kinship analysis of Danish skeletons using postcranial anomalies.

D.T. Case. Department of Sociology & Anthropology, North Carolina State University.

Because many postcranial anomalies show clinical evidence of heritability, they have potential as markers of genetic relatedness. In order to investigate the utility of these anomalies in skeletal kinship studies, heritable postcranial traits were scored on 1020 medieval Danish skeletons divided into three samples, one from the St. Alban parish church in Odense (n = 219), one from the Gray Friar monastery in Odense (n = 362), and a reference sample (n = 439) representing an estimated population frequency for each anomaly. The reference sample is a random sampling of the better preserved skeletons from eight different medieval cemeteries around Denmark.

Trait frequencies were calculated for the cervical vertebrae, sacrum, upper limbs, hands, and feet. In order to identify genetic relatives, individual frequencies within the parish and monastery cemeteries were compared to the population estimate using Fisher’s Exact Test. A significantly higher frequency in the parish or monastery cemeteries (α = 0.05) would indicate the likely presence of a genetic lineage. The rarer the trait, the more likely it is that the individuals sharing the trait all belong to a single lineage. Analysis revealed possible lineages involving three individuals with bipartite scaphoid (2.0% of scorable skeletons) and eight females with MC3 styloid anomalies from the monastery (6.4%). Six males with talocalcaneal coalition (3.7%) from the parish cemetery also appear to belong to a lineage. These compare to population estimates from the reference sample of 0.0% for bipartite scaphoid, 0.7% for styloid anomalies, and 0.9% for talocalcaneal coalition.

Sexual dimorphism in root formation of modern human third molars: A preliminary investigation.

K.K. Catlett¹. ¹School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ.

Histological analyses of root extension rates (RERs) offer important insights into the eruption schedules of human and non-human primates. Few histological studies have utilized root dentine to establish longitudinal root development trajectories; even fewer studies assess development differences between the sexes. This is the first study to calculate RERs from modern human third molars and to provide RERs of M3s for any member of Hominoidea.

Longitudinal data on root formation were collected from the maxillary and mandibular M3 protocone and protoconid roots from 6 individuals (3 males, 3 females). Midline longitudinal sections (ca. 100µm; n=28) were prepared according to well-established protocols and analyzed using transmitted polarized light microscopy. Using digital montages, measurements were collected in 1000 µm intervals for the initial 3 mm of root. Data consist of linear distances of both dentine tubules and accentuated Andresen lines at their point of intersection at multiple points within each 1000µm root segment. Two secretion rates (2.3 and 2.8 µm/day) were used to compensate for variable rates along tubules. No sex differences in RERs were found for any part of the mandibular M3 root (p=0.7389). Maxillary roots, however, show slight but significant differences in RERs, where males exhibit higher RERs (p=0.019). These results highlight subtle differences in root formation rates between arcades that ultimately may play an important role in establishing dental development differences between the sexes. Future research will test whether gender differences in root development are based on ontogenetic changes in RERs or ages at root initiation, or both.

Traumatic injuries in a skeletal collection of Red Colobus (Piliocolobus badius preussi). 

T.J. Chapman, S.S. Legge. Department of Anthropology, University of Kent, Canterbury, UK. 

Trauma is described in longbones from a skeletal sample of Piliocolobus badius preussi housed at the Powell-Cotton Museum, Birchington, Kent, UK. Collected in the 1930s, they represent specimens from a time prior to a great deal of human/primate interaction in west central Africa. Frequencies of healed traumatic fractures have not been described for wild populations of this species from Cameroon. The data presented here will allow for a better understanding of the types of trauma that are survivable. Observations are made on the humeri, radii, ulnae, femora, tibiae, and fibulae for 28 individuals (7 males, 21 females). The type of trauma is characterized, and frequencies are calculated based on both sex and bone(s) involved. The fracture frequency is 29% for males and 19% for females. Both males and females sustained severe traumatic injuries with the majority of injuries to the femur (83%). Several complications are observed associated with the trauma, including traumatic myositis ossificans, pseudoarthrosis, and traumatic arthritis. Possible causes of the high frequency of trauma observed are also discussed.

Primate evolution in Southeast Asia.

H.J. Chatterjee¹, I. Barnes¹, P. Upchurch² & R. Shore¹. ¹Department of Biology, University College London, ²Department of Earth Sciences, University College London.

The phylogenetic and biogeographic history of many Southeast Asian taxa is poorly understood. This is partly due to a sparse fossil record and a limited understanding of the environmental history of the area. Here a range of taxa from the following Southeast Asian genera were selected for study: Loris, Nycticebus, Macaca, Pygathrix, Rhinopithecus, Nasalis, Semnopithecus, Trachypithecus, Presbytis, Hylobates, Bunopithecus, Symphalangus and Nomascus; with Lemur, Eulemur, Varecia, Pongo, Gorilla, Pan and Homo employed as outgroup taxa.

Published molecular data from a range of genetic loci were analysed in both single gene and multiple gene phylogenetic analyses, in independent and combined reconstructions, using likelihood, parsimony and neighbour-joining methods. Resultant phylogenies were incorporated into cladistic biogeographic analyses, using a range of techniques including Parsimony Analysis of Endemicity and Component analysis, to reconstruct the biogeographic history of these taxa. The congruence between these analyses was tested, to predict their patterns of radiation across mainland and archipelagic Southeast Asia. Molecular clock analyses, conducted in the BEAST program, were used to estimate the timings of these radiations. The resultant biogeographic trees were interpreted in light of current hypotheses regarding the environmental history of the area, and the results of the analyses were combined to provide a new interpretation for the phylogenetic and biogeographic history of primates in Southeast Asia.

Funded by Wellcome Trust grant VS/05/UCLA11

Environmental dynamics on an evolutionary time scale can shape the genetic basis of an organism’s adaptability: Insights from the mighty worm (C. elegans)

C-H. Chiu^1,2, T. Bajwa¹, R. Homiski¹, R. Potts³, ¹Department of Genetics, Rutgers University, ²Center for Human Evolutionary Studies, Department of Anthropology, Rutgers University, ³ Human Origins Program, National Museum of Natural History, Smithsonian Institution.

Adaptability involves an organism’s ability to endure novel environments. Paleoanthropological investigations of the hominin fossil record suggest this ability became increasingly evident in the evolution of Homo. The processes by which adaptability may evolve, however, are largely unknown. One hypothesis is that environmental dynamics at diverse temporal scales (generational time) may have some critical effect in shaping the genetic basis of an organism’s adaptability.

The well-characterized model organism Caenorhabditis elegans (nematode worm) has a generation time of three (3) days and is easily maintained in large populations. Hence, this organism is ideal for testing our hypothesis on an evolutionary time scale. Empirical observations show that C. elegans grown at temperatures above 25°C have significantly reduced numbers of progeny and levels of fecundity compared to worms grown within normal culture temperature range of 16-25°C. We propagated worm lines for 110 generations and measured the response (progeny number) to an environmental sequence of initial temperature selection, non-selection, and secondary temperature selection.

The results of this study provide two conclusive findings: (1) A population that experienced a prior episode of temperature selection adapts more quickly than a naïve one and (2) A distinct difference in timing of progeny production exists in selected vs. non-selected individuals.

The implications of this work for understanding the evolution of adaptability in organisms, with focus on Homo, will be discussed.

This research is funded by the NSF HOMINID program (grant BCS-0218511).

Unexpected declines in luteal uterine endometrial thickness in healthy rural Polish women aged 20-40 years: implications for population variation

K.B.H. Clancy. Department of Anthropology, Yale University.

Endometrial thickness may be responsive to ecological factors and prove to be a crucial measurement in the study of reproductive ecology and human biological variation. Although endometrial thickness is commonly thought to be relatively invariant or increase slightly over the luteal phase, previous pilot investigations have revealed significant individual variation. However, population variation remains largely unexplored. In this investigation, endometrial thicknesses in healthy rural Polish women (29±5.3yrs, n=26) were measured using transvaginal ultrasound between days 16 to 24 of their cycle in order to determine whether significant hypothesized population variation was evident. Contrary to expectations based on the clinical literature, endometrial thickness decreased significantly as the cycle day of the ultrasound increased (r²=0.13, p=0.07; results when ET values averaged for each day: r²=0.75, p=0.005). This suggests several possibilities: these data provide negative results for the two current hypotheses of how the endometrium varies across the menstrual cycle, the change in the endometrium over the menstrual cycle varies across populations, or these data show previously undescribed plasticity in endometrial function in response to different ecological conditions. Continuing work will investigate specific contributory factors such as energetic intake and expenditure, insulin levels, parity, and salivary estradiol and progesterone concentrations.

Chimpanzee mitochondrial DNA diversity.

K.G. Claw¹, H. Lin², and A.C. Stone³. ¹School of Life Sciences, Arizona State University, ²Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico, ³School of Human Origins and Social Change, Arizona State University.

The ancestral Pan and Homo lineages diverged about 6 million years ago, and Pan troglodytes (chimpanzee) and Pan paniscus (bonobo) diverged approximately 1-2 million years ago. The isolation of chimpanzee groups by changes in forest distribution and river topography over time resulted in the evolution of three widely recognized subspecies of P. troglodytes: P.t. schweinfurthii, P.t. troglodytes, and P.t. verus. Previous analyses of chimpanzee mitochondrial DNA (mtDNA) sequences have shown that each subspecies can be identified by specific mtDNA lineages. Through mtDNA hypervariable region I (HVI) sequencing, the subspecies of 239 individuals were identified through comparison to sequences of chimpanzees of known subspecies. HVI sequence analyses were used to study inter- and intra-subspecies relationships and population histories. Chimpanzees as a whole had greater mtDNA diversity (p = 0.078) than bonobos (p = 0.039) and humans (p = 0.026). P.t. schweinfurthii had lower levels of mtDNA diversity (p = 0.025) than the other two subspecies (P.t. troglodytes p = 0.045 and P.t. verus p = 0.051). The tentative subspecies P.t. vellerosus has a level of mtDNA diversity (p = 0.036) that falls within the range of the other subspecies. Recent analyses have shown that chimpanzees have lower levels of Y chromosome compared to mtDNA diversity. P.t. verus has the highest levels of mtDNA nucleotide diversity but lowest levels of Y chromosome diversity (based on previous studies) than the other subspecies, which suggests that demographic histories differ between subspecies.

Teeth as part of the hominid tool kit: tooth wear patterns in Neanderthals and early modern humans

A. Clement. Institute of Archaeology, University College London.

Tooth wear is traditionally recorded using ordinal methods that place degrees of wear into discrete categories. Whilst quick to apply these methods can be highly subjective and have the statistical restrictions associated with non-continuous data.

This paper presents the results of a quantitative tooth wear study of Neanderthals and early modern humans. Tooth wear was measured from digital photographs using a computer software programme and a graphics tablet. The occlusal area of each tooth was calculated as well as the area of dentine. To calculate the ratio of wear, the area of dentine was divided by the area of the occlusal surface. This method overcame the many problems connected with ordinal techniques. It also enabled the identification of subtle differences in tooth wear patterns within and between groups of Neanderthals and early modern humans.

These results were then compared to the tool technologies associated with different chronological and regional groups of Neanderthals and early modern humans.

Supported by the Arts and Humanities Research Council

Comparative analysis of two techniques to measure dietary preference in P. ursinis:  ethological observation and dental microwear.

G. Clymer, F.L. Williams. Dept. of Anthropology and Geography, Georgia State University.

Dietary observations on wild primates rarely report the corresponding dental microwear scars due to the endangered status and difficulty of capturing large primates. Meanwhile efforts to reconstruct past diets depend on the diet signal obtained from living primates. To address both of these concerns, a categorization of dietary preferences of Papio ursinus was compiled using behavioral observations at the Cape Peninsula, Table Mountain National Park, South Africa. The herbaceous and invertebrate materials consumed by P. ursinus during the observational study were cataloged and quantified for comparison to the diet signal preserved on dental impressions from wild-caught P. ursinus specimens (n = 27) from the Cape region housed at the South African Museum. Casts from these dental impressions were compared to those obtained from folivores (Alouatta, Colobus and Procolobus), frugivores (Pan and Pongo), gramnivores (Theropithecus) and hard object feeders (Cebus) using low magnification stereomicroscopy. Pits and scratches were quantified and described on the paracone of the second molar of each specimen using a 0.4 mm by 0.4 mm ocular reticle, calibrated at 35x, as a sampling strategy.  P. ursinus revealed multiple flake pits and hyper-coarse scratches suggestive of a heavy grit load and substantial hard object feeding. This dental microwear signal corresponds to the behavioral data collected on free-ranging P. ursinus in the Cape region. During the winter season, when food resources in this fynbos-dominated ecosystem are particularly scarce, P. ursinus is forced to rely on tubers, rhizomes and restiose seeds, that leave the unique dietary signal of a mixed/hard object feeder.

Model-based estimation of variance-covariance structure in landmark data, with a consideration of morphological integration in the Macaca fascicularis cranium.

T.M. Cole III¹, S.R. Lele², J.T. Richtsmeier^3,4. ¹Department of Basic Medical Science, University of Missouri-Kansas City, ²Department of Mathematical and Statistical Sciences, University of Alberta, ³Department of Anthropology, Pennsylvania State University, ⁴Center for Craniofacial Development and Disorders, The Johns Hopkins University.

Measurement of phenotypic variances and covariances (VCV) is central to the study of how complex organisms grow, adapt, and evolve. We address the question of VCV estimation from landmark coordinate data. While we can currently use method-of-moments techniques to estimate singular versions of among-landmark VCV matrices, methods for estimating full-rank matrices have not yet been developed. Importantly, full-rank matrices are necessary both to interpret VCV structures in anatomical terms and to make meaningful comparisons across taxa.

We propose a new technique that uses theoretical models of morphological integration, in conjunction with singular VCV estimates, to produce biologically credible, statistically consistent, full-rank estimates of phenotypic VCV structure. Given a singular VCV estimate and a matrix-valued integration model, we can constrain and uniquely solve a system of simultaneous linear equations, yielding a full-rank VCV estimate. Because we get different estimates under competing models, we have developed a test to determine which of the full-rank VCV estimates from the models we evaluate best fits the data.

As an example, we study 11 cranial landmarks from 48 adult male Macaca fascicularis, covering the neurocranium, basicranium, and face. We consider a series of different theoretical models predicting the “adjacency” of landmarks in terms of shared developmental history (e.g., ossification mode, mesodermal vs. neural-crest origin), participation in common functions (e.g., mastication, respiration, encasing the brain), and spatial proximity. We conclude by demonstrating how VCV structure can be visualized and by outlining some important methodological limitations on landmark-based studies of morphological integration.

Predicting auditory sensitivity from ear morphology in Primates.

M.N. Coleman. IDPAS, Stony Brook University.

Primates express numerous modifications on the fundamental mammalian ear morphology and these differences have proven useful for phylogenetic classification at various taxonomic levels. However, the functional implications of the variation in primate auditory structures are not well understood. A better understanding of how variation in ear structure is related to differences in hearing sensitivity will shed light on the sensory adaptations of extant primates and their fossil relatives.

This study measures a suite of morphological traits of the ear in a wide taxonomic sample of primates and compares these structures to measures of hearing sensitivity. The list of measures on auditory structures includes the external dimensions of the pinna, tympanic membrane and stapedial footplates areas, lever arm lengths of the malleus-incus complex, mass of all three auditory ossicles, linear measurements of ossicular processes, volume of the tympanic cavity and all related diverticuli, and length of the basilar membrane. Hearing sensitivity is evaluated by measuring various parameters of primate audiograms such as high and low frequency limit, frequency of greatest sensitivity, and area of the auditory curve.

Relatively high correlations are found between individual and groups of structures and particular hearing patterns. For example, tympanic membrane area and tympanic cavity volume are strongly related to low frequency sensitivity while ossicular mass does a good job of explaining high frequency limit. The relationship between lever arm ratios and maximum sensitivity is complex but appears to agree with acoustic theory when examined within suborders. These findings set the stage for predicting hearing sensitivity in fossils.

An assessment of the taxonomic status of the hominid femora KNM-ER 1481A and KNM-ER 1472.

M. Collard¹, V. Herridge². ¹Department of Anthropology and Sociology, University of British Columbia, ²Department of Biology, University College London.

It is widely accepted that the femora KNM-ER 1481A and 1472 are early representatives of the genus Homo, but discussion continues as to which species of Homo they should be assigned. According to some researchers they represent Homo rudolfensis since they were found at the same site as the type specimen of this species, KNM-ER 1470. According to others, at least one of the specimens, KNM-ER 1481A, has features that link it with Homo erectus. Still others have argued that KNM-ER 1481A should not be attributed to H. erectus but only to archaic Homo, because the features that have been suggested to link it with H. erectus do not in fact allow discrimination at the species level within Homo.

In the study reported here we used bootstrapping methodology to test the hypothesis that KNM-ER 1481A and 1472 cannot be distinguished from non-erectus Homo femora at p≤0.05. Eleven measurements were taken on KNM-ER 1481A and 1472 as well as on samples of extant great apes, modern humans, and a range of fossil hominid femora including specimens that have been assigned to Australopithecus, Paranthropus and Homo. From these measurements distributions of differences between intra-specific pairs of great ape and modern human specimens were generated on the basis of size-corrected average taxonomic distance. The distributions were then used to assess the significance of the differences among the various fossil hominid femora. The results of these analyses indicate that KNM-ER 1481A and 1472 cannot be distinguished from non-erectus Homo femora.

Anthropoid masticatory adaptations to hard and tough diets.

P.J. Constantino. Hominid Paleobiology Doctoral Program, CASHP, Department of Anthropology, The George Washington University.

In trying to reveal masticatory adaptations to diet, past studies have searched for correlations between skull morphology and broad dietary categories such as ‘frugivore’ or ‘folivore.’ But the complexity of most primate diets is not captured by these categories. The current study examines diet from the perspective of food material properties. More specifically, it seeks to determine if foods classified as “hard” or “tough” have a consistent and predictable effect on the skull morphology of primates. This is different from traditional approaches in that it recognizes that it is the material properties of foods that determine the levels of stress and strain in the masticatory apparatus. Thus, these properties may be more closely tied to morphology than broad categories of food type.

Both Old World (Macaca) and New World (Cebus) monkeys were compared using geometric morphometrics to determine if the species within each genus that eat the hardest or toughest foods feature biomechanical adaptations for doing so. Masticatory traits were considered to be adaptations for consuming hard or tough foods if they either increased the mechanical advantage of the masticatory system, or decreased the stress or strain placed on the system. The results show that Cebus apella and Macaca sylvanus are both adapted for eating mechanically demanding foods relative to the other members of their respective genera. Macaca fuscata also shows similar adaptation in the mandible, but contrary to predictions, it has a narrower face than the other macaque species.

(PC is supported by The George Washington University and by NSF-IGERT Fellowship Grant No. 9987590)

Capable hands: Osteoarthritis, activity patterns and the sexual division of labor.

D.C. Cook. Indiana University.

Patterns of Activity-Induced Pathology in a Canadian Inuit Population remains the best example in our literature of task-related modifications in the skeleton. Its success reflects its grounding in the rich ethnographic literature on Inuit peoples and the physical demands posed by their strenuous way of life. Merbs was forced to omit hand phalanges from his study because of poor recovery and difficulty in assessing side and ray.

Tasks involving forceful repetitive use of the fingers are among the most gendered in traditional societies. Weaving, spinning, sewing, sorting of seeds, milking, writing, and flint-working are among the tasks of interest. Apart from Merbs’ identification of sex-specific wrist arthritis patterns linked to kayak paddling and leather working, most literature on activity-related modification of the hand is anecdotal. Both Kennedy and Angel have focused on flexor tendon attachments in the hand phalanges, the former with regard to writing and the latter with regard to weaving. Grip strength and strain gage data on subjects performing the tasks listed above are used to assess these interpretations. The resulting model is applied to a comparison of sexual dimorphism and asymmetry in early 20^th century cadaver hands.

The phylogenetic position of the Victoriapithecidae.

S.B. Cooke. Anthropology, The City University of New York Graduate Center, New York Consortium in Evolutionary Primatology.

The Victoriapithecidae is a family of African cercopithecoids whose taxonomic placement has been much argued in recent years. The family currently comprises two genera and three species: Victoriapithecus macinnesi, Prohylobates tandyi, and Prohylobates simonsi. Victoriapithecus is by far the best known of these taxa, largely due to the extensive collection from Maboko Island, Kenya, mainly recovered by B. Benefit and colleagues. The Maboko specimens date to the mid-Miocene and show a number of conservative features including incomplete bilophodont dentition and a small cranial capacity. The victoriapithecids have most often been placed as the sister group to the Cercopithecidae, especially by Benefit, and it has been hypothesized that colobine and cercopithecine monkeys evolved from this victoriapithecid stock. However, the victoriapithecids share several cranio-dental characters with the cercopithecines to the exclusion of the colobines, so an alternative interpretation is that the "victoriapithecids" may be stem cercopithecines. This study evaluates that hypothesis.

Over fifty quantitative and qualitative cranio-dental characters of extant and fossil cercopithecines, colobines, and early catarrhines were considered. Quantitative data were taken using calipers. Results indicate close phylogenetic affinity between Victoriapithecus and the cercopithecines, separate from the colobines. In light of this finding, it is suggested that Victoriapithecus and relatives can no longer be accepted without question as a separate family within the Cercopithecoidea. A more detailed reanalysis of all known data is required to adequately choose between the two well-supported alternative hypotheses of relationship.

Financially supported, in part, by NSF 0333415 (NYCEP IGERT).

Sacred elements: assessing Byzantine pilgrimage to Jerusalem using elemental and isotopic composition of human bone.

A.L. Cooper¹, Z.J. Viets², S.G. Sheridan¹. ¹Dept. of Anthropology, University of Notre Dame, ²Dept. of Anthropology, University of Kansas.

Elemental and isotopic analysis of bone was conducted as part of an investigation of migration (pilgrimage) to a Byzantine (5^th-7^th C) monastic community in Jerusalem. Fifty-four adult left proximal femoral shafts were sampled. Sex was determined using femoral head diameter and linea aspera robusticity, with the majority of individuals illustrating decidedly masculine features. Samples were analyzed for Ca, Sr, P, and Ba using an Inductively Coupled Plasma Optical Emission Spectrometer (ICP-OES). A mean Ca/P ratio of 2.1:1 indicated good bone mineral preservation. The log₁₀(Ba/Ca) and log₁₀(Sr/Ca) were calculated according to Burton (2003) to determine whether the individuals at St. Stephen’s monastery were from the region or of non-local origin.

The adult samples were also analyzed for stable strontium isotope content (⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr). Strontium is incorporated into the hydroxyapatite crystal due to its chemical similarities to calcium. Different geographic regions have distinct geochemical profiles with relatively unique ⁸⁷Sr/⁸⁶Sr isotopic ratios. Thermal Ionization Mass Spectrometer (TIMS) was used for this phase of the analysis. These data, combined with dental metrics, and cranial, dental, vertebral, and femoral non-metrics demonstrated considerable homogeneity in all these features for the monks in this urban community. Although historical records for the region and period describe pilgrimage to the “Holy Land” as a major social phenomenon in the 5^th-7^th centuries, Jerusalem’s largest monastic compound seems to have drawn its members from the surrounding environs.

This research was funded by the National Science Foundation (SES #0244096), the University of Notre Dame’s Honors Program and the Institute for Scholarship in the Liberal Arts.

Does osteopenia play a role in the morphology of the Eskimo femur?  

L. Copes¹, M. Gomberg², K. Mowbray³. ¹Institue of Human Origins, School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University, Tempe, AZ, ²The History Channel, New York, NY ³American Museum of Natural History, New York, NY

The Tigara and Iputiak populations from Point Hope, Alaska present a fascinating case study for anthropologists interested in skeletal adaptations to cold climates. While much ink has been spilled on the subject of nose size and shape in relation to climate, less work has been done on the geometry of long bones. When compared to American whites (n=247) and blacks (n=42) in the AMNH collection, the Point Hope individuals (n=231) show several statistically significant differences. Overall, the Eskimo femur is both short and stout with thin cortical walls. The increased diameter of the femur offsets its thinner cortex in maintaining strength and stiffness. More precisely, increased strength in resolution of torsion and axial loads is accomplished with less cortical area as girth expands relative to length.

We propose that the geometry of the Eskimo femur helps to maintain strength and rigidity despite a thinner cortex, less dense bone and less bone volume. Eskimo coxofemoral geometry increases skeleto-muscular advantage through proportions, girths, angles and torsions amenable to the reduction of joint loads and associated skeletal stress. 

Other attributes of the geometry of the Eskimo femur also appear conducive to the reduction of skeletal stress and joint reaction forces and infer mechanical advantage and strength. These include relative head size, shape, length, angle and rotation of the femur neck, platymeria, orientation at mid shaft, bowing, carriage angle and a strong and prominent pilaster. We propose these changes are due to osteopenia and climate adaptation.

What the Moche Giants didn’t have: a medical evaluation of potential causal agents.

A. Cordy-Collins, Anthropology Department, University of San Diego, J.P. Kemp, Mingei International Museum

Between 1997 and 2000 a unique archaeological discovery was made at Dos Cabezas, Peru. This ancient city was built during the first centuries AD by the Moche people of the north coast. Excavations in the main pyramid at the site uncovered four high status tombs, within which were the remains of five young elite males. All exhibited unusual skeletal pathologies, including abnormally tall stature. These five “Giants” are the first such individuals recorded in the hemisphere. In our investigations of possible causal agents we have considered and evaluated Pituitary Gigantism, Marfans syndrome, Parahyperthyroidism, Thalassemia, Gaucher’s disease, Nieman-Pick’s disorder, Ehlers- Danlos syndrome, Homocystinuria, and McCune-Albright syndrome. All have been rejected. Examination of the Giants’ pathologies and the reasons for dismissing the proposed diagnoses are discussed.

The positional behavior of the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus avunculus) at Du Gia Nature Reserve, Ha Giang Province, Vietnam.

H.H. Covert¹, Le Khac Quyet², B.W. Wright³. ¹Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado at Boulder, ²Fauna & Flora International – Vietnam Program, ³Department of Anthropology, George Washington University

The Tonkin snub-nosed monkey (Rhinopithecus avunculus) is recognized as one of the 25 most critically endangered primates in the world. Endemic to Vietnam, it is presently known only from three locations: Na Hang, Cham Chu, and Du Gia nature reserves. During the past year our team has spent approximately 12 days per month collecting data on this species at Du Gia. In contrast to the three Chinese snub-nosed monkey species, the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey is an arboreal specialist that rarely, if ever, comes to the ground. Locomotion is primarily palmigrade symmetrical gait walk (pronograde quadrupedalism) but also includes frequent leaping and armswinging. Pronograde and brachiating leaps are commonly used to cross openings in the canopy. During feeding and resting, animals commonly use a sit/forelimb suspend posture. In addition, when feeding on small substrates, animals have been observed using a forelimb/hindlimb stand posture. While these data are preliminary in nature, it appears that like other odd-nosed monkeys, the Tonkin snub-nosed monkey uses suspensory locomotion and postures more frequently than do other Old World monkeys.

Funded in part by FFI/Vodafone, Primate Conservation Inc., Zoological Society of San Diego, National Geographic Society, and CRCW of the University of Colorado.

Postcranial growth and development of immature skeletons from Point Hope, Alaska.

L.W. Cowgill, Department of Anthropology, Washington University, St. Louis.

The relatively large sample of immature remains from the site of Point Hope, Alaska represents a unique opportunity to examine patterns of postcranial growth and development in a population primarily engaged in a hunting subsistence economy. This study examines several aspects of limb growth, particularly the development of postcranial robusticity and ecogeographic body proportions throughout ontogeny, in the immature skeletal remains from Point Hope. Midshaft cross-sectional properties of the femur, humerus, and tibia, along with limb indices, were compared between three samples: Tigara and Ipiutak period subadults from Point Hope, Alaska (N = 70); Indian Knoll Archaic subadults (N = 110); and urban and rural South African subadults from the Dart Collection (N = 96). The results of this analysis indicate that differing patterns of cross-sectional robusticity emerge relatively early in ontogeny in these three samples. In addition, differences in ecogeographic limb proportions are clearly apparent in the immature remains from South Africa and Point Hope. While differences in body proportions between these three samples are likely genetically based, the early appearance of contrasting levels of limb robusticity may result from differing patterns of mobility and upper limb use during childhood.

Origins of Aleut populations: Molecular perspectives.

M.H. Crawford, M. Zlojutro, R.C. Rubicz. Laboratory of Biological Anthropology, University of Kansas.

Molecular and demographic studies were initiated in 1999 to determine the Siberian origins of the inhabitants of the Aleutian Islands and their role in the peopling of the Americas. To date, more than 460 persons from eight islands of the Aleutian archipelago (Atka, Bering, King Cove, Sand Point, St. George, St. Paul, Unalaska, and Umnak) have been sampled for mtDNA variation. A sample from Bering Island has been analyzed for STR variation. RFLP analyses and sequences of the HVS-1 revealed the presence of two of the five founding Native American haplogroups, A and D. Haplogroup D occurred at a high frequency in Aleuts, distinguishing them from Eskimos who have a high frequency of A and a subtype A4 defined by np 16265 A→G transition. AMOVA analysis revealed the persistence of population structure along an east-west axis, concordant with both linguistic and archaeological evidence. The Aleuts share two haplotypes A3 and D2 with Native American and Siberian populations and exhibit one haplotype specific only to the Island populations, namely A7 (16212A transversion). Median network analyses reveal that the Aleuts are most closely related to the Chukchi and Siberian Eskimos, but differ from Alaskan Eskimos. Mismatch distribution for the total Aleut population is bimodal with mutation peaks at 0 and 7. However, mismatch reanalysis of the Aleuts subdivided by the three haplotypes is suggestive of a dual expansion of the Aleuts. The A and D clusters indicate that the Aleuts separated from the Eskimos approximately 6000 years bp.

This research was supported by grants from NSF: OPP-990590 and OPP-0327676.

An investigation of secular change in the craniofacial morphology of White and Black males and females in the United States.

S. Cridlin. Department of Anthropology, University of Tennessee.

Secular changes in the human skeleton have been of interest to anthropologists for almost a century. While short-term or generational microevolutionary changes are considered the result of environmental conditions acting on growth and development, longer temporal trends are typically deemed the result of a combination of both environmental and genetic factors. Plasticity in craniofacial morphology remains one particular area of interest and documented investigation. In this study, four craniofacial angles and indices of 19^th Century and modern Americans are examined for evidence of secular change utilizing a sample (n = 685) of craniometric measurements compiled from the Terry Collection, the Hamann-Todd Collection, and the University of Tennessee Forensic Data Bank.

Each of the four mid-facial angles examined, Simotic angle, Zygomaxillary angle, Nasio-frontal angle, and the Dacryal angle are calculated from pairs of established craniometric measurements as defined by W. W. Howells. As additional analysis, craniofacial indices corresponding to the above mid-facial angles are also calculated. Evaluation of secular changes executed by statistical regression of the cranial variable on year of birth indicates a negative trend or reduction in craniofacial angles discernible as a narrowing of the mid-facial region.

Observable non-metric cranial characteristics continue to be relied upon as a fundamental technique for ascribing ethnic affinity to skeletal remains. Increasing evidence of secular changes should signify that such characteristics are not “fixed” and attention must be given to the collection and utilization of metric data from both bioarchaeological and forensic remains for future temporal studies and subsequent methodological improvements.

Allomaternal care among the Hadza of Tanzania.

A.N. Crittenden¹, F.W. Marlowe². ¹Dept. of Anthropology, University of California, San Diego, ²Dept. of Anthropology, Harvard University, Cambridge.

Previous research demonstrates that the presence of allomaternal care may positively affect the reproductive success of the recipient mother (Bereczkei and Dunbar 2002, Crognier et al. 2001, Flinn 1989, Hames and Draper 2004, Hrdy 2005, Ivey 2000, Sear et al. 2000, 2003, Turke 1988). A number of individuals may provide direct care and/or caloric provisioning to dependent offspring, possibly lessening a mother’s energetic and nutritional burden during costly stages of reproduction (Hawkes et al. 1989, 1997, Hill and Hurtado 1996, Ivey 2000, Marlowe 2001, 2003).

The current study provides data on allomaternal assistance among the Hadza of Tanzania. The percentage of time an infant or child under four years of age is held by an individual other than the biological mother is used as a measure of direct care. Camp scan data collected during a total of 53 days from August – September 2003 and December – January 2004 are used to determine the frequency in which dependent children are held by allomothers. Our results indicate that Hadza children receive a substantial amount of allomaternal care, reflecting a child rearing system in which various classes of allomothers (related and non-related) provide direct assistance to the recipient mother. These data suggest that among the Hadza, allomaternal care may be one type of low-cost assistance that influences parental investment tradeoffs and increases a mother’s reproductive success. Research on the precise role of allomaternal assistance in cooperative breeding among humans adds insight into the evolution of human life history.

Support: National Science Foundation

Child growth as a measure of livelihood security: the case of the Gwembe Tonga.

D.L. Crooks, L. Cliggett. Department of Anthropology, University of Kentucky.

Anthropometric measures of child growth have long been used by international, national and local health organizations to assess the well-being of populations. Where children fail to “measure up” to international references of height, weight, and/or arm circumference, they are considered “undernourished” and the causes of growth deficits are sought in circumstances of health and nutrition. Through the theoretical lens of human adaptability, biological anthropologists have contributed much to this work, especially as it relates to how humans negotiate their environments and the consequences for adaptive outcomes. More recently, many biological anthropologists, or biological/cultural anthropologist teams, have been investigating the roles of social location and political-economy in resource acquisition, with consequences for growth outcomes. This approach requires a broader perspective on environment and attention to community, household and/or individual strategies for gaining access to resources however limited and/or constrained.

In this paper, we outline a theoretical approach and research methodology that consider the relationship between livelihood strategies and anthropometric outcomes among Gwembe Tonga migrants in Southern Province, Zambia. We use measures of child growth to ascertain the success of diverse and multiple livelihood strategies of two generations of families who have negotiated, and continue to negotiate, the challenges of shifting environments resulting from forced displacement from their homeland in the 1950s, and a subsequent, secondary migration to a frontier zone further north in the 1980s.

This research is supported by the University of Kentucky College of Arts and Sciences and the National Science Foundation (#BCS 0517878).

A summed segment analysis of bipedality: Implications for hominin dispersals out of Africa.

A. Cross. Department of Anthropology and Sociology, The University of British Columbia.

Human bipedal walking is a whole-body activity. To effectively model hominin locomotion a segmented model must be used to account for differences in movement throughout the body. Using segment surface areas and 3D motion capture data of walking modern humans, segment displacements and thermoregulatory responses in varying environments were estimated for several fossil hominin species.

The lower energetic cost of arms compared to that of legs, the limited cost of swinging the arms during gait, the fact that the arm segments are the most capable of dissipating heat due to their SA/M, sweat gland recruitment patterns, and greater rates of displacement during normal walking, all strongly suggest that the evolution of bipedality has been influenced by the thermoregulatory benefits of arm swing during normal locomotion. Early hominins may have retained a more Pan-like body morphology after the adoption of habitual bipedality because it provided thermoregulatory advantages without the energetically costly gain of mass associated with increases in leg length. Factors other than, or in addition to, long distance bipedal walking must be responsible for the dramatic postcranial changes seen in the Plio-Pleistocene hominins.

This study found no clear energetic-based reason why hominins possessing primitive body morphologies should not be expected off the African continent either prior to, or after, H. erectus/ergaster. However, these data do indicate that a biped with a modern human body morphology would be less sensitive to ambient temperature changes and would be able to safely exploit a greater range of environments.

A review of the clinical literature and skeletal alterations associated with iron deficiency anemia: is the postcranial skeleton affected?

R.E. Cuddahee. Department of Anthropology, State University of New York at Buffalo.

The relationship between iron deficiency anemia (IDA) and skeletal lesions is addressed in both the clinical and anthropological literature. There is a general consensus that the symmetrical sieve-like porosities of the frontal and parietal bones, together with widened diploe (porotic hyperostosis), have an anemic origin. However, the responses of the postcranial skeleton to iron deficiency remain elusive. Isolated clinical studies conducted during the 1960s and 1970s claim patients with IDA have both cranial and postcranial skeletal alterations. Two key questions are addressed. First, is the diagnosis of IDA supported by the patient’s hematologic profile? Second, in justified cases of IDA, are postcranial abnormalities the direct result of the hematologic disorder?

An evaluation of eleven clinical studies, commonly cited in the anthropological literature, which suggest a relationship between IDA and skeletal lesions is presented here. Laboratory results of a combined total of 149 patients are evaluated against current cutoff values for major laboratory parameters, such as hemoglobin, hematocrit, serum iron and ferritin.

In all patients exhibiting postcranial skeletal abnormalities (n=117), the clinicians failed to either unequivocally establish the diagnosis of IDA through laboratory results or attribute the lesions primarily to IDA. In many cases, patients may have suffered from a variety of disorders including the anemia of chronic disease, protein energy malnutrition, genetic anemia, and primary or secondary iron deficiency. The results of this review demonstrate the cause of postcranial lesions should not be attributed to IDA and that greater caution is necessary in the interpretation of clinical data.

Variation in dental eruption in wild ring-tailed lemurs (Lemur catta) at Beza Mahafaly Special Reserve, Madagascar: Implications for understanding lemur life history.

F.P. Cuozzo¹, M.L. Sauther². ¹Department of Anthropology, University of North Dakota, ²Department of Anthropology, University of Colorado-Boulder.

Patterns of dental eruption provide an important indicator of primate life history. Because of the difficulties inherent in collecting data on dental development in wild primates, much of the available information on primate dental eruption comes from captive studies or skeletal samples. Here we present data on dental eruption in a population of wild ring-tailed lemurs from Beza Mahafaly Special Reserve, Madagascar. As part of our comprehensive study of this population, across three field seasons (2003-2005), we collected data on dental eruption from 23 subadult individuals (2nd year cohort, minimum age of 18 months), determined by body mass, sexual maturity, and absence of a full adult dentition. At a minimum age of 18 months, 11 of 23 subadults had not yet experienced gingival emergence of the adult maxillary canines. This contrasts with published data for ring-tailed lemurs, in which adult maxillary canines are reported to emerge at 15 to 16 months. Also, two of the 23 individuals examined exhibited "delayed" emergence of adult P₂ (not yet emerged or having just emerged). Although we have witnessed less mating synchrony than previously reported for ring-tailed lemurs, asynchronous reproduction does not account for later eruption of the adult maxillary canines in our sample, compared with captive ring-tailed lemurs. This suggests that Lemur catta exhibits slower dental development than previously understood, and indicates that observable, individual variation in dental eruption can occur in a single lemur population.

Genetic factors in physical growth and development.

S.A. Czerwinski, A.C. Choh, E.W. Demerath, M. Lee, B. Towne, R.M. Siervogel. Lifespan Health Research Center, Department of Community Health, Wright State University School of Medicine, Dayton, OH, USA.

Diminished growth during childhood can be viewed as either an indicator of environmental stress, or as an adaptive response to environmental stress. Normal physical growth is influenced by both genetic and environmental factors. Examining familial data from a well-nourished U.S. population, we estimate the influence of genetic factors on growth in stature over the course of childhood. Serial stature data (i.e., birth through adulthood) from participants in the Fels Longitudinal Study were used to derive relevant stature growth parameters. Maximum likelihood-based variance component methods were then used to determine the heritability of each parameter and to examine the relationships among growth parameters by estimating genetic and environmental correlations between the traits. Heritability estimates for the growth parameters are generally high and statistically significant ranging in magnitude from 54-92%. These results show that in a well-nourished population, physical growth in stature is a highly canalized process under strong genetic control. As such, human growth measures are expected to be highly efficient in their response to selective pressure.

(Supported by NIH AR052147, HD12252, HL69995)

Bone stiffness variation in the mandibular symphysis of colobine monkeys.

D.J. Daegling¹, J.L. Hotzman¹, W.S. McGraw² and A.J. Rapoff³. ¹Department of Anthropology, University of Florida, ²Department of Anthropology, The Ohio State University, ³Department of Mechanical Engineering, Union College.

The sympatric cercopithecids Colobus polykomos and Procolobus badius process qualitatively different diets in the wild, with the former taxon seasonally feeding on hard seeds. Predicted differences in mandibular size and geometry, however, fail to reflect the varying functional demands that this dietary difference putatively entails.

The implicit assumption of biomechanically-informed comparisons of size and shape is that the material properties of bone are invariant and similar among specimens under examination. We tested the validity of this assumption through microindentation of cortical bone from the mandibular symphysis in 6 adult specimens (2 male and 1 female each) of C. polykomos and P. badius. Using a Vickers indenter with a 100 g mass and 10 s dwell time, we collected 271 hardness samples at intervals of 0.5-2 mm on labial and lingual cortical bone polished from transverse sections through superior and inferior transverse tori. These hardness values were converted to elastic modulus through linear regression.

The mandibular bone of C. polykomos is significantly less stiff than that of P. badius; in both taxa female stiffness values are significantly higher than those of males. Moreover, the bone from the highly-strained lingual cortex is more compliant than that of the labial cortex. No systematic difference in modulus is observed between superior and inferior sections nor among indentations sampled along a mesiodistal gradient. These results suggest that bone’s response to magnified stress environments does not necessarily entail material stiffening. Instead, greater compliance enhances toughness at the expense of strength, providing effective resistance to fatigue failure.

Athletes: How different are they from the rest of us?

S. Daneshvari¹, O. M. Pearson¹, R. M. Malina². ¹Department of Anthropology, University of New Mexico; ²Tarleton State University, Stephenville, TX.

Current methods for estimating body mass do not account for both lean and adipose tissue. It is reasonable to assume that prehistoric people were leaner than modern Americans. In fact, some researchers have likened prehistoric peoples’ body composition to that of Olympic athletes. However, elite athletes may not provide a good reference sample for modern individuals in forensic contexts. In a previous study, we used stepwise regression formulae to estimate body mass for female collegiate athletes and non-athletes. Utilizing only anthropometric measurements that largely reflect underlying skeletal dimension, the single most useful measurement was bicondylar breadth. This study focuses on determining the usefulness of athletes as a reference population for estimating the body mass of non-athletes.

The mean weights, heights, and BMIs of white female collegiate athletes and non-athletes were statistically analyzed. There is no significant difference in BMI (p =0.94), yet both the mean weight and height of athletes differ significantly from non-athletes (p <0.0001). When the athletes are subdivided by sport, the mean weights for divers, tennis, and track and field athletes as well as the mean height for divers are not significantly different from non-athletes. When the body mass of non-athletes is predicted from the athletes' best multiple regression equation using skeletally-based measurements, the non-athletes' body mass is consistently underestimated and the R² value falls from 0.764 to 0.532. Athletes are not an appropriate reference population to estimate the body mass of contemporary populations.

Experimental analysis of human footprint generation.

K. D’Août^1,2, L. Meert¹, F. Hagman³, B. Van Gheluwe³, D. De Clercq⁴, P. Aerts^1,4. ¹Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, ²Centre for Research and Conservation, Royal Zoological Society of Antwerp, ³Laboratory of Biomechanics, Free University of Brussels, ⁴Department of Movement and Sport Sciences, Ghent University, Belgium.

Fossilised footprints contain information about the dynamics of gait, but their interpretation is difficult, as they are the combined result of foot anatomy, gait dynamics and substrate properties. We explore how footprints are generated using modern humans.

Sixteen healthy subjects walked on a solid surface and in a layer of fine-grained sand. In each condition, 3D-kinematics of the leg and foot were recorded for 15 trials at preferred speed, using an infrared camera system (Vicon). Additionally, plantar pressures (Footscan) and ground-reaction forces (Kistler) were recorded. After each trial in sand, the depth of the imprint was measured under specific sites using calipers.

Subjects walked slower in sand than on solid ground, with more flexion of the knee during the swing phase and less extension prior to heel strike. Maximal pressure was the most influential factor for footprint depth under the heel. Footprint depth at the midfoot is best predicted by foot morphology (flat, “normal” or high-arched). At the 2nd metatarsal head, footprint depth is mainly determined by peak pressure and maximal impulse. The depth of the hallux imprint correlated best with body mass and peak pressure.

We conclude that footprint morphology cannot be related to a single variable, but that different zones of the footprint reflect different aspects of the kinesiology of walking. Therefore, an integrated approach, combining detailed kinematics, plantar pressure recordings, kinetics, and morphological data, is needed.

Supported by grant G.0125.05 of the FWO-Flanders.

Locomotion and skeletal differentiation within the Pitheciini.

L.C. Davis¹, S.E. Walker², S.M. Ford³. ¹Department of Anthropology, Northeastern Illinois University; ²Department of Sociology, Anthropology, and Criminology, Missouri State University; ³Department of Anthropology, Southern Illinois University.

In previous studies comparing positional behavior and anatomy of Pithecia and Chiropotes, the focus has been on the leaping and clinging of Pithecia and the quadrupedalism of Chiropotes, together with their associated anatomical differences. While little detail is known of the positional behavior of P. monachus, preliminary and anecdotal evidence indicates that quadrupedal locomotion and use of horizontal supports figure more prominently than in P. pithecia. Here we compare the postcranial skeleton of P. monachus with that of P. pithecia and Chiropotes satanas. More than 150 size-corrected measurements from the limbs, hand, and foot were statistically compared among the three species.

The three pitheciins are largely undifferentiated in slightly more than half of the metric traits examined. Interestingly, Chiropotes and P. monachus share a significant number of traits exclusive of P. pithecia, including an elongated infraspinous fossa of the scapula and a deep ulnar midshaft. These traits may be consistent with their quadrupedal habits, although the significance of other shared traits is less evident. P. pithecia is distinguished from the other two pitheciins by a suite of traits in the elbow region, a number of features in the knee, and elongation of several limb, hand, and pedal elements. Many of these features in P. pithecia are consistent with its leaping and vertical clinging habits and accord with previous studies documenting other postcranial leaping adaptations. The significance of these results for the evolution of locomotion in the pitheciin clade will be discussed.

Reconstruction of stature from head circumference.

M.R. Dayal^1,2, F. De Conti¹, M. Henneberg¹, M. Steyn², D. Veitch³. ¹Department of Anatomical Sciences, The University of Adelaide, ²Department of Anatomy, University of Pretoria. ³SHARP Dummies Pty. Ltd.

Estimation of stature from the skeleton is often based on partial remains. Sometimes only skulls are available in forensic cases or archaeological collections. In this study regression of stature on head circumference through glabella and opisthocranion and the ratios of stature to head circumference were calculated in samples from three populations: South African Blacks (m=30, f=30), South African Whites (m=30, f=30) and Australians of predominantly European extraction (m=60, f=1227). Ratios seem to be simpler and more reliable in predicting stature than regressions. The average ratios were: black males 3.08 (sd=0.16), white males 3.21 (sd=0.12), black females 2.98 (sd=0.11), white females 3.07 (sd=0.09), Australian females 2.95 (sd=0.12) and Australian males 3.05 (sd=0.13). Differences between groups and sexes were significant (p < 0.05). Average errors of stature predicted from ratios range from 39 mm to 66 mm. These errors appear to be within a reasonable range for stature prediction in forensic analysis. Thus, when no long bones are available, it may be useful to predict stature from the skull by multiplying the head circumference by a factor close to 3.0. Head circumference as measured in this study includes thickness of soft tissues. This thickness on average is about 6 mm in Australians. Correcting for this produces a ratio of skull circumference to head circumference equal to 0.935. Such ratio should be used when reconstructing stature from dry skull circumference.

Long bone curvature in Neanderthals and modern humans: A new method for measuring long bone curvature using 3D landmarks and semi-landmarks.

I. De Groote¹, C.A. Lockwood¹, L.C. Aiello², ¹Department of Anthropology, University College London, ² Wenner-Gren Foundation for Anthropological Research.

Long bone curvature has normally been studied by using the radius of curvature or the subtense taken from the cord to point of maximum curvature. These techniques assume that the curve is either an arc on the perimeter of a circle or regular in form. They therefore do not provide information about the pattern of the curvature.

We describe a new technique developed in the context of research into bone curvature in Neanderthals and other Late Pleistocene and recent hominins. Our technique uses 3D landmark and semi-landmark analysis, the latter of which has only previously been used on cranial features. The combination makes it possible to include both point and outline information in a single analysis and permits study of the anterior, posterior, medial and lateral curves separately or as part of the total bone morphology. A superimposition step (generalized Procrustes analysis) eliminates the effects of scale.

Intra-observer error was assessed using Procrustes distances calculated between individuals as well as between repeats of each individual. The distances between repeats are significantly smaller than between individuals, demonstrating that landmark data collection is reliable although care must be taken when defining the number of semi-landmarks used. Larger numbers of semi-landmarks result in greater error between repeats, possibly due to the exaggeration of measurement error.

Contrary to some earlier research using other techniques, we identify significant differences between Neanderthals and anatomically modern humans. These results indicate that 3D landmark and semi-landmark analysis improves upon previous methods in the amount of information provided.

Research supported by funding from Synthesys: Synthesis of Systematic Research Europe; Royal Anthropological Institute, London; the Graduate School, University College London.

Bonobos really do eat more THV: Using incisal curvature to interpret dietary behaviour for Pan paniscus

A.S. Deane, Department of Anthropology, University of Toronto, Department of Pathology and Anatomical sciences, University of Missouri.

Although Pan troglodytes (chimpanzees) and Pan paniscus (bonobos) are predominantly frugivorous with a preference for soft-textured food items, it has often been inferred that the latter consumes greater quantities of terrestrial herbaceous vegetation (THV). This dietary distinction is a fundamental component of hypotheses that seek to explain significant socioecological differences between Pan species (i.e. larger bonobo group sizes, higher degree of socialization in bonobo females) as a consequence of decreased intra-species competition in bonobos resulting from the increased consumption of continuously available THV. However, higher THV consumption in bonobos is only weakly supported by limited field data based on indirect proxies for dietary behaviour (i.e. time spent feeding, fecal analysis). Likewise, corresponding analyses of Pan molar morphology demonstrate that both species overlap significantly, although bonobos have larger shearing crests on their upper molars consistent with increased levels of THV consumption. This study addresses the potential for a detailed morphometric analysis of incisal curvature to provide higher resolution dietary information for bonobos.

I used High Resolution Polynomial Curve Fitting (HR-PCF) to quantify and evaluate the labial and occlusal curvatures of incisor crowns representing P. paniscus (n=38), P. troglodytes (n=37), Gorilla gorilla gorilla (n=34), G. g. graueri (n=46) and G. g. beringei (n=19). Analysis of the resulting dataset confirms that diet more strongly correlated to incisal curvature than phylogeny, and while bonobos are most similar to chimpanzees, they are morphologically intermediate between that taxon and seasonally frugivorous gorillas (i.e G. g. gorilla, G. g. graueri), which suggests increased levels of THV consumption.

Extracting three-dimensional information from the hominid mandibular dentition.

L.K. Delezene. School of Human Evolution and Social Change, Arizona State University.

It is becoming increasingly common to extract morphometric information from three-dimensional models. For researchers interested in dental morphology, tools for extracting information from three-dimensional models have been adapted from Geographic Information Systems (GIS). GIS based measurements have been successfully used to quantify aspects of occlusal morphology, but may not be the most appropriate tools for studying nonocclusal dental morphology. This study uses a new tool for examining the configuration of the buccal surface of the mandibular premolars and molars in fossil hominids. The shape of the buccal surface is assessed using a quadric surface fitting program, which is now being applied to studies of other anatomical regions. A quadric surface is fit to three-dimensional models of dentition that are created from laser scanning. The parameters of the quadric surface are used to describe the curvature of the buccal surface of the tooth.

The premolars and molars of Pan troglodytes (n=10), Otavipithecus namibiensis (n=1), Ouranopithecus macedoniensis (n=3), Australopithecus anamensis (n=5), A. afarensis (n=10), A. africanus (n=10), and Homo habilis (n=10) are chosen for this study because of previously reported qualitative and quantitative differences in the configuration of the buccal surface of their teeth. Measurements derived from the quadric surface fitting technique are compared to traditional measurements of molar flare and the relative placement of cusps on the occlusal surface. Weak correlations between the parameters of the quadric surface and traditional measurements are observed. The traditional measurements rely on two-dimensional ratios to describe the morphology of the buccal portion of the tooth and result in the loss of three-dimensional information. This study demonstrates the usefulness of applying quadric surfaces to teeth but the technique is not limited to studies of dental morphology.

Debating human phylogeny since 1860: stasis or progress?

R.G. Delisle. Department of Anthropology, McGill University.

Debates on human phylogeny since the inception of paleoanthropology around 1860 are often depicted as being largely devoted to recurrent issues about linear or multilinear hypotheses. It is assumed by this traditional historiography that key issues had already been defined in this early period, the following periods being essentially devoted to gather the relevant empirical material or build the proper theoretical context in order to favor one phylogenetic hypothesis or another.

This traditional view of the development of paleoanthropology is challenged. A thorough survey and analysis of the literature from 1860 to 2000 reveals clearly that the field went through three distinct historical and epistemological phases: 1860-1895, 1895-1935, 1935-2000. Each phase faced distinct issues and challenges as to how to resolve phylogenetic questions. It is by resolving them that paleoanthropologists managed to push their field forward to a new phase. By so doing, they continually reduced the diversity of hypotheses judged scientifically defensible, a diversity which was impressive in early periods and not merely restricted to the linear-multilinear dichotomy. Although changes in theories of evolution somewhat impacted on the development of the field, it is clear that the main drive of progress throughout the periods was mainly empirical in nature. Today’s debates on human phylogeny are nearly consensual when looked from a deep historical perspective.

Genetic influences on growth rate during infancy: Data from the Fels Longitudinal Study.

E.W. Demerath, A. Choh, S.A. Czerwinski, B. Towne, R.M. Siervogel. Lifespan Health Research Center, Dept. of Community Health, Wright State University School of Medicine.

Diminished childhood growth rate relative to the genetic potential to grow can be seen in an evolutionary framework as a function-sparing adaptation to adverse environments. However, the presence or absence of adaptation is difficult to ascertain when parental growth (which is often used to determine “genetic potential”) has been affected by nutritional stress as well, or when the prevailing nutritional environment is rapidly changing. To gain insight into the genetic potential to grow under a “best case” scenario, we will use familial data from a well-nourished U.S. sample to examine the genetics of growth during infancy, when decrements have the most enduring and marked effects. Log-linear functions were used to fit curves to serial weight data from 0-3 years for 523 participants in the Fels Longitudinal Study, and predicted weights and weight velocities were calculated at each age. Multipoint variance components linkage analysis was conducted in a subset of individuals to identify chromosomal regions influencing early growth. Infant growth and growth velocity were under relatively strong genetic control, with heritabilities greater than 0.8 on average. However, a higher impact of environmental factors was evident in early infancy than later infancy; heritability of infant growth rate was 0.6 at birth and rose to over 0.9 at age 6 months—a reflection of growth as a target seeking function and recovery from maternal environmental effects on growth. Linkage analyses also suggested particular regions of chromosomes 3, 6, 10, 11, 12, and 16 that harbor genes influencing infant weight and infant weight velocity.

Relationship between neonatal brain and body mass and menstrual bleeding in primates.

J. DeSilva, B. Strassmann. Anthropology Department, University of Michigan.

True menstrual bleeding is found in all catarrhine primates, some platyrrhine monkeys (Cebus and the atelines), some chiroptera, and elephant shrews. Although the developing brain has been implicated as a selective force in many aspects of uterine physiology, the relationship between neonatal brain mass and menstrual bleeding has never been tested. Neonatal brain masses from 43 primate species were compiled from the literature and from Yerkes and Oregon National Primate Research Centers. Menstrual patterns were categorized as absent or covert, slight, and overt. We analyzed the data using independent contrast statistics from COMPARE 4.6.

There is a strong relationship between the presence of menses in primates and the size of the neonatal brain/surface area of the adult uterus (r=0.29; p=0.06). We also found a statistically significant relationship between the neonatal litter mass/adult female body mass and whether menstruation is slight or overt (r= 0.34; p= 0.02). The percentage of brain growth in utero, neonatal brain size relative to gestation, length of the follicular phase, and neonatal brain size relative to adult female body size showed no relationship with menstrual bleeding.

It is unclear which of the above measurements best test the impact of neonatal brain growth on female reproductive physiology. These results are complicated by the scarcity of reliable data on neonatal brain masses in primates. Comparisons will also be made using available data on menstruating bats and elephant shrews.

Estradiol, strain, and periosteal bone growth.

M.J. Devlin, D.E. Lieberman, N. Ledoux. Peabody Museum, Harvard University.

Recently we showed that estradiol (E₂) increases osteogenic responses to loading, a mechanism that may underlie variation in human skeletal robusticity. This hypothesis was supported in sheep (Ovis aries, N=32) exposed to either low or high E₂ levels and either sedentary or high activity levels. Periosteal growth in exercised animals was 25-75% greater in high-E₂ than in low-E₂ animals, but only 15-20% greater in sedentary high-E₂ vs. low-E₂ animals.

Although E₂ clearly stimulates bone growth, it is unknown whether this growth improves resistance to deformation. This study tests the hypothesis that E₂-induced periosteal growth coincides with areas of peak tensile strain at midstance. We calculated midshaft cross-sectional properties (polar moment of area, J_N; section moduli of tension and compression, Z_Nt, Z_Nc) in the tibia and metatarsal using the experimentally determined neutral axis (Lieberman et al., 2004) and compared them to areas of bone growth during the experiment.

Results indicate little variation in J_N, although it is greatest in high-E₂ animals. In the tibia, section moduli are similar in the low-E₂ and high-E₂ sedentary groups. However, Z_Nt and Z_Nc are 17-20% greater in high-E₂ vs. low-E₂ exercised animals, corresponding to periosteal deposition on the anterior and posterior surfaces of the bone. In the metatarsal, Z_Nt and Z_Nc are 13-24% greater in the high-E₂ exercised vs. the sedentary groups, corresponding to deposition on the posterior surface. These results support the hypothesis that E₂-induced periosteal growth improves bone’s resistance to bending, which may have functional implications for human bone growth.

The genetic architecture of 2-D molar cusp areas in baboons: implications for hominid evolution.

N.K. Do¹, M.C. Mahaney², L.J. Hlusko¹. ¹Dept. of Integrative Biology, University of California, Berkeley. Dept. of Genetics, Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research and the Southwest National Primate Research Center.

Tooth morphology plays a central role in reconstructing phylogenetic relationships among primates, as well as interpretations of diet and behavior. This is especially the case for extinct species that may be known only by their dental remains. Therefore, investigations of the genetic and non-genetic factors that contribute to the variation in tooth morphology are critical. The relative size of molar cusps has been an important character within hominid evolutionary studies. But past research has been limited to phenotypic variation, with no information about the possible pleiotropic affects that may influence morphological evolution. Here, we present the first quantitative genetic analysis of 2-D left mandibular molar cusp areas (protoconid, metaconid, entoconid, and hypoconid). These phenotypes were collected from captive pedigreed Papio hamadryas individuals from the Southwest Foundation for Biomedical Research and Southwest National Primate Research Center (n>600). Our analyses of all 12 cusp area phenotypes return significant total heritabilities that average 0.28 (h2r = 0.38), and indicate that sexual dimorphism accounts for approximately 24% of the total phenotypic variance. Through bivariate analyses, we find that the protoconid and entoconid have shared genetic effects estimated to be 1 or insignificantly different from 1. In contrast, the minor variation in size of the metaconid relative to the hypoconid is estimated to be genetically independent for all molars. The evolutionary implications of this genetic architecture will be discussed.

Taxonomic variation in facial mobility among anthropoid primates.

S.D. Dobson. Department of Anthropology, Washington University.

Anthropoids use facial displays to mediate social relationships within groups. Display complexity is a function of the mobility of the superficial facial muscles. Qualitative observations suggest that considerable variation in facial mobility exists among anthropoids. However, this issue has never been examined quantitatively. The purpose of this paper is to analyze patterns of variation in facial mobility between anthropoid superfamilies.

Video recordings were collected from zoo animals representing 12 species (4 ceboids, 5 cercopithecoids, and 3 hominoids). Facial action repertoire size, or the number of discrete muscle actions, was estimated for each species using standardized criteria defined by the Facial Action Coding System (FACS). Box plots and cluster analysis were used to visualize differences in the degree and pattern of facial mobility between superfamilies. Body mass is highly correlated with facial action repertoire size (r = 0.95). Thus, analysis of covariance (ANCOVA) was used to test for significant differences in mean repertoire size between groups.

On average, hominoids have the most mobile faces, while ceboids exhibit the least mobility and cercopithecoids are intermediate. Exceptions include Hylobates concolor, which groups with cercopithecoids, and Cercopithecus neglectus, which groups with ceboids. However, ANCOVA reveals no significant differences in the degree of facial mobility between superfamilies, controlling for body mass. The results of this study suggest that taxonomic variation in facial mobility among anthropoids is primarily a function of body size.

Research supported by NSF (#0424160) and Sigma Xi.

On using zinc in teeth to interpret maternal and infant diet and health: insights from analyses of a contemporary Mexican sample.
 

A.E. Dolphin¹, A.H. Goodman², D. Amarasiriwardena². ¹Department of Anthropology, The University of Western Ontario, ²Department of Natural Sciences, Hampshire College.

The assessment and interpretation of zinc (Zn) concentrations derived from chemical analyses of biological hard tissues has been troubled by the complexities inherent in working with an essential trace element implicated in several important biological processes. Because Zn is subject to some homeostatic control by the body and does not undergo a clear trophic level separation several researchers have suggested its utility for paleodietary reconstruction is severely limited. However, with an understanding of the nature of Zn physiology, nutrient interactions and local factors affecting bioavailability it may yet be possible to utilize measures of hard tissue Zn concentrations in evaluating diet and health.

Pre-and-postnatal enamel Zn levels were determined via LA-ICP-MS for 80 teeth collected from 46 infants participating in a large longitudinal study (NCRSP) in Mexico during the mid-1980s. Relationships between enamel Zn levels and ~200 variables documenting maternal diet and infant growth, morbidity and cognitive development were explored. Some significant findings suggest that an individual’s prenatal enamel Zn content reflects certain aspects of their mother’s pregnancy diet. Further, prenatal enamel Zn appears to be predictive of the cognitive development of these Mexican infants. These results suggest that, despite the fact that Zn is an essential element, its variation among individuals’ dental enamel may be understood in terms of maternal diet during crown formation, and be indicative of future functional outcomes.

SSHRC Doctoral Fellowship #752-2000-1192; NIH #R15 DEO9863; NSF CRUI Project DBI 9978793

Mitochondrial DNA analysis of Pleistocene bison.

K.C. Douglas¹, R.P. Adams¹, L.E. Baker². ¹Department of Biology, Baylor University, ²Department of Anthropology, Forensic Science, and Archaeology, Baylor University.

Ancient DNA sequences, specifically the control region of mtDNA, have proven to be an important tool in evaluating evolutionary trends and population dynamics of extinct species. Bone samples (n=33) of Bison priscus were obtained from the Kolyma Region of Siberia, Russia. Throughout the Pleistocene, Bison priscus ranged from modern-day Europe to Central America eventually going extinct around the Pleistocene-Holocene transition. Furthermore, two modern species, Bison bison (North American bison) and Bison bonasus (Eurasian bison), are descended from Bison priscus. Their wide distribution, sustained presence throughout the Pleistocene, and presence of modern descendents makes bison an excellent model to investigate faunal migration and phylogenetic relationships.

DNA was extracted from approximately 300 mg of bone from each sample using a silica/guanidine thiocyanate method, and a 766 bp portion of the mitochondrial control region was amplified and sequenced. Samples that have been sequenced to date have radiocarbon dates between 20,000-40,000 years old. The ancient mtDNA sequences from Bison priscus are compared to sequences from the two modern species of bison. From the comparisons, insights are provided on migrational patterns of bison between North America and Eurasia via the Beringian sub-continent. Genetic distance measurements will be presented providing information on phylogenetic relationships. These data will be presented along with techniques in amplifying ancient DNA.

Upper- and lower-limb skeletal muscle site variability in modern humans.

M.S.M. Drapeau. Département d’anthropologie, Université de Montréal.

Skeletal muscle site morphology has often been used to interpret activity variability among human populations. Although greater muscular activity and older age appear to result in more marked insertions, the specific roles of intensity vs. frequency of muscle contractions are not well understood. Previous researchers have hypothesized that robusticity and, possibly, stress lesions are the result of habitual contractions while exostoses results from stronger, but less habitual contractions. This study compares muscle insertion morphology of the lower and upper limbs in a human archaeological sample (n=47). It is hypothesized here that the upper limb will be more variable than the lower limb in expression of robusticity, lesions, and exostoses because the lower limb is constantly used in locomotor activities that are mostly symmetrical while use of the upper limb is more characteristically asymmetrical. Muscle insertion sites of the right and left upper and lower limb were scored for robusticity, lesions, and exostoses on a scale from 0 to 3 following Hawkey (1988). For each individual, average differences between left and right scores are calculated for upper and lower limbs and compared statistically. Results show that the upper limb is not more asymmetric than the lower limb in robusticity or lesions. Interestingly, the lower limb is more asymmetric than the upper limb in exostoses. In addition, the lower limb has relatively more exostoses than the upper limb. These results suggest that exostosis may develop from very powerful contractions that are more frequent in the lower limb than in the upper limb.

This research is supported by the Fond québécois de la recherche sur la société et la culture.

Morphological and hormonal correlates of ‘masculinization’ in ringtailed lemurs (Lemur catta).

C.M. Drea. Department of Biological Anthropology and Anatomy, Duke University.

Ringtailed lemurs represent a valuable model for examining current theories of sexual differentiation, the role of androgens in mediating aggression, and the evolution of primate social systems, as females display a set of masculine characteristics, including a pendulous clitoris, size monomorphism with males, and social dominance over males. To explore whether androgens may ‘organize’ or ‘activate’ the expression of these traits, this study examined morphology and serum endocrine profiles in captive lemurs, at the Duke University Primate Center, across portions of the reproductive life span. Experiment 1 measured the external genitalia of intact adults (9 females, 9 males) to characterize the extent of female morphological ‘masculinization.’ Females displayed a shorter anogenital distance and a larger urethral meatus, but total clitoral width and length were comparable to those of the extruded male glans. Experiment 2 examined steroidal fluctuations in adult lemurs (10 females, 12 males) over 4 annual cycles, and assessed hormonal correlates of prenatal development in 16 pregnancies. Adults of both sexes showed a significant breeding season peak in steroid production. Whereas male testosterone (T) concentrations exceeded those of females, both sexes showed comparable androstenedione (A4) concentrations. Pregnancies that produced singleton males, twin males, or mixed sex twins showed higher T, A4, and estradiol (E2) concentrations, especially late in gestation, than did pregnancies that produced singleton or twin females, but steroid concentrations in female-producing pregnancies consistently exceeded preconception and postpartum values. These data are consistent with the hypothesis that female lemurs may be partially masculinized through exposure to maternal androgens.

Funded by NSF grant (BCS-0409367).

Mitochondrial DNA Variation in Northern Altaian Ethnic Groups.

M.C. Dulik¹, S.I. Zhadanov^{1, 2}, L.P. Osipova², T.G. Schurr¹. ¹Department of Anthropology, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, PA; ²Institute of Cytology and Genetics, SB RAS, Novosibirsk, Russia.

Archaeological and historical evidence show that the present-day Altai Republic has experienced a series of invasions/migrations over the past several millennia. These population movements have led to a complex biological and cultural history for the indigenous populations of this region. Indigenous Altaians are generally divided into northern and southern groups based on well-established linguistic, physical and cultural differences. Classical genetic markers studies have also revealed differences between these two groups, with varying amounts of influence from Central Asia, Western Eurasia and East Asia being detected. To further elucidate the genetic diversity of Northern Altaians, we analyzed SNP variation in mtDNAs from Chelkan, Tubalar and Kumandin individuals (N=240) living in eight villages in the northern Altai Republic. The majority of the studied mtDNAs lineages were characteristic of other Turkic-speaking groups of native Siberians, with some minor subbranches appearing to be specific to these populations. Comparisons between the Northern Altaian ethnic groups revealed a substantial difference in the genetic substructure of the villages. While most haplogroups were found in all three ethnic groups, Chelkans possessed the majority of haplogroup F, N9a and N* types, showing close relation to Khakass population. On the contrary, Kumandins demonstrated a paucity of Western Eurasian lineages, and instead had an abundance of East Eurasian haplogroup C types. Interestingly, in about half of the villages, these ethnic groups did not share the same haplogroups. This information provides us with a better understanding of the population histories of Altaian populations and how they relate to their Siberian neighbors.

Left and right side symbolism in trophy taking among the Postclassic Maya.

W.N. Duncan. Dept. of Anthropology, St. John Fisher College.

Bioarchaeologists have become increasingly interested in identifying evidence of vanquished enemies and trophy taking in the archaeological record. In many cases it is only possible to identify, through cutmark analysis and examination of underrepresented elements, if such violation occurred. In some cultural contexts, such as the Maya area, accompanying lines of evidence allow for insight as to why certain body parts were taken as trophies. Recent analysis of a Postclassic (AD 950-1524) Maya mass grave from the northern Guatemala found a discrepancy between the representation of left and right humeri, radii, and ulnae, as well as molars. Specifically there was a statistically significant underrepresentation of the left radii, ulnae and molars. Additionally one human molar and one animal canine had holes drilled in their roots, suggesting that trophy taking did occur. Palka (2002) recently demonstrated that victors in Maya murals are right handed, while the vanquished are left handed. This paper presents evidence demonstrating that the right arm and forearm bones and molars from the mass grave were intentionally omitted, reflecting an attempt to violate the deceased in part by emphasizing the left side of the body. Although such side discrepancy has been identified in animal caches in the Maya area, this marks the first time such side discrepancy has been identified among human remains.

This work was supported by an NSF Grant 0125311.

Hindlimb adaptations in Ourayia and Chipetaia, relatively large-bodied omomyine primates from the Middle Eocene of Utah.

R. Dunn, J.M. Sybalsky, G.C. Conroy, and D.T. Rasmussen. Department of Anthropology, Washington University

North American omomyids represent a tremendous Eocene radiation of primates exhibiting a wide range of body sizes and dietary patterns. Despite this adaptive diversity, relatively little is known of the postcranial specializations of the group. Here we describe hindlimb and foot bones of Ourayia uintensis and Chipetaia lamporea that were recovered from the Uinta B member (early Uintan Land Mammal Age), Uinta Formation, Utah. These specimens provide insight into the evolution of postcranial adaptations across different body sizes and dietary guilds within the Eocene primate radiation. Body mass estimates based on talar measurements indicate that Ourayia and Chipetaia weighed about 1500-2000 g and 500-700 g, respectively. Skeletal elements recovered for Ourayia include the talus, navicular, entocuneiform, first metatarsal, and proximal tibia; bones of Chipetaia include the talus, navicular, entocuneiform, and proximal femur. Both genera had opposable grasping big toes, as indicated by the saddle-shaped joint between the entocuneiform and first metatarsal. Both taxa were arboreal leapers, as indicated by a consistent assemblage of characters in all the represented bones, most notably the somewhat elongated naviculars, the high and distinct trochlear crests of the talus, the posteriorly oriented tibial plateau (Ourayia), and the cylindrical head of the femur (Chipetaia). The closest resemblances to Ourayia and Chipetaia are found among the Bridger omomyines, Omomys and Hemiacodon. The results of our comparisons suggest that the later, larger, more herbivorous omomyines from Utah retained skeletal structure characteristic of earlier, smaller North American omomyids.

The sex of the Lake Mungo 3 skeleton.

A.C. Durband¹, D.R.T. Rayner², M. Westaway³. ¹Dept of Sociology, Anthropology, and Social Work, Texas Tech University, ²School of Archaeology and Anthropology, The Australian National University, ³The Willandra Lakes World Heritage Area, Department of Environment and Conservation.

The Lake Mungo 3 skeleton has been the subject of controversy since its discovery in 1974. Thorne (1977, 2002) has long argued the existence of two distinct founding populations of early Australians, a “robust” morph and a “gracile” morph, and Lake Mungo 3 has been categorized as a “gracile” male in this dichotomy. Brown (1987, 2000) has criticized these ideas, questioning the rationale behind the partitioning of the Pleistocene Australian skeletal sample into different populations. In addition, Brown (2000) has alleged that the sex of Lake Mungo 3 cannot be determined from the available evidence, since the skeleton lacks the most diagnostic areas of the skull and pelvis.

In an effort to reexamine these questions, our team collected an exhaustive battery of cranial and postcranial measurements from the Lake Mungo 3 skeleton. These measurements are compared to a number of Australian samples of known sex, both from the Pleistocene as well as the Holocene, in an effort to diagnose the sex of Lake Mungo 3. In all, approximately 12 cranial and 55 postcranial measurements can be used for these comparisons.

The results of our work do support the assignment of male sex to Lake Mungo 3. Many of the postcranial measurements sampled fall at the extreme high end of the male sample, sometimes beyond the observed male range, and likewise fall well outside the female range. However, these results also lead us to question the attribution of Lake Mungo 3 to a “gracile” category amongst early Australians.

Financial support for this project was provided by the Franklin Research Grant Program of the American Philosophical Society.

An evaluation of variation in the biology and lifeways of two pre-contact Point Hope, Alaskan Inupiat cultures as evidenced by their thoracic morphology.

K.L. Eaves-Johnson. Department of Anthropology, University of Iowa.

The subsistence strategies and related activity patterns of the pre-contact Point Hope Inupiats are not well-documented archaeologically. Analysis of the artifacts associated with the two pre-contact cultural groups (Ipiutak and Tigara), has led to the hypothesis that their lifeways were dissimilar despite sequential occupation of the same location in coastal Alaska. The absence of whaling implements in the Ipiutak sample has led some to speculate that their subsistence was primarily based on sealing and walrusing, with seasonal procurement of caribou; whereas evidence from the Tigara cultural period supports the view that these later people principally subsisted upon whale resources. In the present study, I test the hypothesis that lower rib-cage sulcal patterning in the Point Hope Inupiats is associated with their subsistence strategy and related activity patterns, and may be used to differentiate the Ipiutak and Tigara using a muscle stress marker (MSM) analytic approach. To this end, discrete coding of the 11^th and 12^th ribs for iliocostalis and quadratus lumborum mm. muscle scarring was compared among a mixed-sex sample (n=250) of Point Hope Inupiats. Additionally, respiratory area, curvature, and sexual dimorphism were examined for a small subset of the Point Hope sample (Tigara; M=10, F=7). My major results support a relationship between variation in activity pattern and the patterning of lower rib robusticity and muscle insertion rugosity. These results, and further considerations, suggest that additional study of Point Hope activity patterns from a MSM perspective, including handedness in relation to lower-rib patterning, is required.

Linnaean binomials and the Christian trinity: Faith-based barriers to scientific understanding.

R.B. Eckhardt. Department of Kinesiology, Pennsylvania State University.

Both concepts -- binomials and the trinity -- logically require a suspension of disbelief. In the case of the trinity, one has to be able to believe that three entities simultaneously also are a single entity; while in the case of Linnaean binomials, one must believe the converse, that single lineages that were continuous across thousands of generations can and should be represented (for "convenience" but really out of tradition) as being segmented into a chain or tree of discontinuous ancestor-descendant entities (or else, necessarily, parents of some conventionally-recognized taxon such as Homo erectus gave birth to a Homo sapiens child, for example). The connection to attempted insertions of “intelligent design” into biology curricula is that investigators still using the Linnaean system as an accepted part of "science" may be conditioning minds to accept logical impossibilities in other regards. (It is widely acknowledged that Linnaeus. was a creationist,