Achievement

Trainee Nicole Webb, in collaboration with IGERT faculty Harcourt-Smith (her advisor) and Pontzer (all from CUNY), examined the functional affinities of the reconstructed pelvis of Ardipithecus ramidus, a putative human relative more than 4 million years old. Ar. ramidus was compared to a wide range of extant anthropoid primate taxa with known locomotor repertoires, as well as appropriate fossil analogs (Au. afarensis, Au. africanus, and Proconsul nyanzae). Using 3D geometric morphometric techniques, Nicole evaluated innominate shape to quantify the functional and phylogenetic signals associated with the os coxa in various taxa. Her findings suggest that Ar. ramidus has a pelvic configuration that is “intermediate” between that of Homo sapiens and a broad range of extant anthropoids and is morphologically distinct from both Proconsul and other above-branch quadrupeds. In addition, the ischial and pubic regions share morphological features with some extant African ape species.