# overview
I am a paleoanthropologist whose research focuses on the ecology and evolution of the early hominins of Africa. My research centers on the origin of the genus Homo, and on early representatives of that genus. In 2010, my research team and I announced the discovery of a new hominin species - Australopithecus sediba - from the site of Malapa in South Africa. Australopithecus sediba represents a curious mixture of both australopith-like and Homo-like morphologies, and based on this mosaic of characters, we hypothesized that it represents the australopith ancestor of the genus Homo. In 2015 my research team and I announced the discovery of another new hominin species - Homo naledi - from the site of Rising Star, also in South Africa. This species is especially fascinating in that it was likely contemporaneous with the earliest representatives of Homo sapiens, and, perhaps even more remarkable, that they appear to have deliberately disposed of their dead. I am also involved in a series of studies investigating the isotope ecology of modern South Africa in order to better contextualize the isotope ecology of the extinct hominins of South Africa.

I originally arrived at Texas A&M University in 2003, after receiving my PhD in Anatomical Sciences at the University of the Witwatersrand in Johannesburg in 2001. In 2009 I was promoted to Associate Professor with tenure, and was appointed to a Ray A. Rothrock '77 Fellowship for my efforts in research, teaching, and service leading up to tenure. In 2013 I was promoted to Full Professor, and in 2014 I was appointed to a Cornerstone Faculty Fellowship in Liberal Arts. In 2016 I was honored to receive a Distinguished Achievement Award in Research from the Association of Former Students at Texas A&M. I have been serving as the Department Head of Anthropology since July of 2019.

# keywords[]
Faunal Analysis Carcass Damage And Disintegration

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
University of Manitoba - (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada)

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
University of Manitoba - (Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada)

# educationAndTraining[].organization.label
University of the Witwatersrand - (Johannesburg, South Africa)

# publications[].label
Mandibular remains support taxonomic validity of Australopithecus sediba.

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American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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Developing a Geographic Information System (GIS) for mapping and analysing fossil deposits at Swartkrans, Gauteng Province, South Africa

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The apportionment of tooth size and its implications in Australopithecus sediba versus other Plio-pleistocene and recent African hominins.

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A comparison of hominin teeth from Lincoln Cave, Sterkfontein L/63, and the Dinaledi Chamber, South Africa

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New fossil remains of Homo naledi from the Lesedi Chamber, South Africa.

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Using strontium isotopes to study site accumulation processes

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Strontium isotopes from early hominin sites in South Africa can provide new insights in paleoecology and taphonomy

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Preliminary investigation of matjhabeng, a pliocene fossil locality in the free state of South Africa

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New hominin first metatarsal (SK 1813) from Swartkrans.

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Paranthropus paleoenvironments in South Africa

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Mandibular variation in early Homo and Au. sediba

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Strontium isotope analysis of curved tooth enamel surfaces by laser-ablation multi-collector ICP-MS

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Hominins, sedges, and termites: new carbon isotope data from the Sterkfontein valley and Kruger National Park.

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Significance of diet type and diet quality for ecological diversity of African ungulates.

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Strontium isotope ratios of mammalian fossils from Malapa, South Africa.

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Animal palaeocommunity variability and habitat preference of the robust australopiths in South Africa

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Isotopic evidence for dietary variability in the early hominin Paranthropus robustus.

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American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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Using carbon isotopes to track dietary change in modern, historical, and ancient primates.

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Strontium isotope evidence for landscape use by early hominins.

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Geological and taphonomic context of excavations within the Rising Star cave system

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PALEOANTHROPOLOGY. Comment on "Early Homo at 2.8 Ma from Ledi-Geraru, Afar, Ethiopia".

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American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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Animal diets in the Waterberg based on stable isotopic composition of faeces

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Preliminary results of excavations at the newly investigated Coopers D deposit, Gauteng, South Africa : preliminary research reports : human origins research in South Africa

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Academy of Science for South Africa (ASSAf)

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Preliminary results of excavations at the newly investigated Coopers D deposit, Gauteng, South Africa

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Diets of Southern African Bovidae: Stable Isotope Evidence

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Crown shape analysis of the maxillary dentition of Homo naledi

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Stable carbon isotope ecology of small mammals from the Sterkfontein Valley: Implications for habitat reconstruction

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Diets of impala from Kruger National Park: evidence from stable carbon isotopes

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The upper limb of Australopithecus sediba.

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American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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Mechanical evidence that Australopithecus sediba was limited in its ability to eat hard foods.

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Faunal composition and bone accumulating agents in the Plio-Pleistocene cave infills of South Africa

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Homo naledi cranial remains from the Lesedi chamber of the rising star cave system, South Africa.

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Analysis of bovid remains from Malapa, South Africa and implications for the paleoenvironment of Australopithecus sediba

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Developmental simulation of the adult cranial morphology of Australopithecus sediba

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Investigating the Role of Eagles as Accumulating Agents in the Dolomitic Cave Infills of South Africa

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Revised age estimates of Australopithecus-bearing deposits at Sterkfontein, South Africa.

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Metric and nonmetric features of the Homo naledi dentition

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Assessing diet in savanna herbivores using stable carbon isotope ratios of faeces

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Bony facial buttressing in South African australopiths: a finite element analysis

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Late Australopiths and the Emergence of Homo

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Stable isotope characterisation of mammalian predatorprey relationships in a South African savanna

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A morphometric examination of Homo naledi teeth from Dinaledi Chamber, Rising Star cave system, South Africa

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Contemporary flowstone development links early hominin bearing cave deposits in South Africa

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Strontium isotope ratios (87Sr/86Sr) of tooth enamel: a comparison of solution and laser ablation multicollector inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry methods.

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New Australopithecus robustus fossils and associated U-Pb dates from Cooper's Cave (Gauteng, South Africa).

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Inter- and intrahabitat dietary variability of chacma baboons (Papio ursinus) in South African savannas based on fecal delta13C, delta15N, and %N.

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Taxonomic, anatomical, and spatio-temporal variations in the stable carbon and nitrogen isotopic compositions of plants from an African savanna

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Skull diversity within the Homo lineage and the relative position of Homo naledi

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Undescribed hominin fossils from the   Transvaal Museum faunal collections

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Stable isotopes in fossil hominin tooth enamel suggest a fundamental dietary shift in the Pliocene.

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Relative abundance, skeletal part representation and accumulating agents of macromammals at Swartkrans

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Constraints on feeding biomechanics in Australopithecus sediba

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The Biomechanics of Bony Facial "Buttresses" in South African Australopiths: An Experimental Study Using Finite Element Analysis.

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Homo naledi, a new species of the genus Homo from the Dinaledi Chamber, South Africa.

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Preliminary Investigation of the New Middle Stone Age Site of Plovers Lake, South Africa

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THE PLIO-PLEISTOCENE ANCESTOR OF WILD DOGS, LYCAON SEKOWEI N. SP.

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Australopithecus sediba at 1.977 Ma and implications for the origins of the genus Homo.

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American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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New craniodental remains of the type specimen of Australopithecus sediba

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Dental morphology and the phylogenetic "place" of Australopithecus sediba.

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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A morphometric assessment of Homo naledi deciduous molar teeth from Dinaledi Chamber, Rising Star cave system, South Africa

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KB5223 from Kromdraai B: Australopithecus robustus or early Homo?

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Specimen dates and species longevity: An evaluation of the use of temporal range data for questions of ancestry in the hominin fossil record

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Early hominin auditory ossicles from South Africa.

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Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences

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Principal strain orientations during biting in the faces of chimpanzees and australopiths

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Do "savanna" chimpanzees consume C4 resources?

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Sr/Ca and early hominin diets revisited: new data from modern and fossil tooth enamel.

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Leopards as taphonomic agents in dolomitic caves - Implications for bone accumulations in the hominid-bearing deposits of South Africa

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Identification of rodent microfauna using postcrania with implications for paleoenvironmental reconstruction

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A phenetic analysis of the cranium of Australopithecus sediba

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Pleistocene Bovidae (Mammalia) from Malapa, Gauteng Province, South Africa

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Quantitative morphological analysis of bovid teeth and implications for paleoenvironmental reconstruction of Plovers Lake, Gauteng Province, South Africa

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Using the Faunal Community to Determine the Local Ecology for Early Hominins at Coopers Cave at 1.5 Ma

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Morphometric analyses of maxillary and mandibular first molars of Pleistocene hominins

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Indications of habitat association of Australopithecus robustus in the Bloubank Valley, South Africa.

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Temporal ranges and ancestry in the hominin fossil record: The case of Australopithecus sediba

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Immature Hominin Craniodental Remains From a New Locality in the Rising Star Cave System, South Africa

# publications[].publisher
Paleoanthropology Society & European Society for the study of Human Evolution.

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Using stable isotope analysis to identify fallback foods in fossil taxa.

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The endocast of MH1, Australopithecus sediba.

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American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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Diets of savanna ungulates from stable carbon isotope composition of faeces

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Skull diversity in the Homo lineage and the relative position of Homo naledi.

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Special Issue: Australopithecus sediba --- Malapa at 10: Introduction to the Special Issue on Australopithecus sediba

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Chad: discovery of a vertebrate fauna close to the Mio-Pliocene boundary

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Stable isotope characterization of mammalian predator-prey relationships in a South African savanna

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Geological and taphonomic context for the new hominin species Homo naledi from the Dinaledi Chamber, South Africa.

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Icarus, Isotopes, and Australopith Diets

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Strontium isotope ratios in fossil teeth from South Africa: assessing laser ablation MC-ICP-MS analysis and the extent of diagenesis

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Descriptive catalog of Homo naledi dental remains from the 2013 to 2015 excavations of the Dinaledi Chamber, site U.W. 101, within the Rising Star cave system, South Africa.

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A partial pelvis of Australopithecus sediba.

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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Mosaic morphology in the thorax of Australopithecus sediba.

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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Craniodental fossils from a new locality in the Rising Star Cave System

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The evolutionary relationships and age of Homo naledi: An assessment using dated Bayesian phylogenetic methods.

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News and views: response to 'non-metric dental traits and hominin phylogeny' by Carter et al., with additional information on the Arizona State University Dental Anthropology System and phylogenetic 'place' of Australopithecus sediba.

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Dietary variation in impala Aepyceros melampus recorded by carbon isotope composition of feces

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Investigating molar crown shape variation of australopithecines at Sterkfontein and Makapansgat, South Africa

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A sabre-tooth felid from Coopers Cave (Gauteng, South Africa) and its implications for Megantereon (Felidae: Machairodontinae) taxonomy

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Identifying trends in the environmental heterogeneity at Australopithecus robustus sites

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What insights can baboon feeding ecology provide for early hominin niche differentiation?

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Further insights into the skull of Australopithecus sediba

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Australopithecussediba from Malapa, South Africa

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Recently identified postcranial remains of Paranthropus and early Homo from Swartkrans Cave, South Africa.

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Elephant (Loxodonta Africana) diets in Kruger National Park, South Africa

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Stable carbon isotope analyses of Parapapio tooth enamel from Sterkfontein and Swartkrans - Reply

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Swartkrans: A Record of Paleoenvironmental Change in the Cradle of Humankind

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A cranial base of Australopithecus robustus from the hanging remnant of Swartkrans, South Africa.

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Faunal assemblage composition and paleoenvironment of Plovers Lake, a Middle Stone Age locality in Gauteng Province, South Africa.

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Description and analysis of three Homo naledi incudes from the Dinaledi Chamber, Rising Star cave (South Africa).

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Craniodental remains of Australopithecus sediba from Malapa, South Africa.

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Australopithecus sediba: a new species of Homo-like australopith from South Africa.

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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Estimation and comparison of the adult cranial morphology of Australopithecus sediba using developmental simulation

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Utilization of savanna-based resources by Plio-Pleistocene baboons

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Mimosa: a new Middle Stone Age fossil locality in the Free State of South Africa

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Revised faunal lists for members 1-3 of Swartkrans, South Africa

# publications[].publisher
American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS)

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Strontium isotope evidence for landscape use by early hominins (vol 474, pg 76, 2011)

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

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Leopard (Panthera pardus Linneaus) cave caching related to antitheft behaviour in the John Nash Nature Reserve, South Africa

# researcherOn[].label
Doctoral Dissertation Research Award: Faunal Remains As An Environmental Reconstruction Tool

# researcherOn[].awardedBy.label
National Science Foundation - (Arlington, Virginia, United States)

# streetAddress
Texas A&M University; Anthropology; 4352 TAMU

# etdChairOf[].label
Carlson, Keely Britt (2014-08). Developmental Simulation of the Adult Cranial Morphology of Australopithecus sediba. Doctoral Dissertation.

# etdChairOf[].label
Brophy, Juliet (2011-12). Reconstructing the Habitat Mosaic of Australopithecus robustus: Evidence from Quantitative Morphological Analysis of Bovid Teeth. Doctoral Dissertation.