Doctoral Dissertation Research: Generation and Evaluation of Body Mass Prediction Equations Using Articular Surface Areas of the Primate Tarsus

Duke University, Durham NC

Investigators

Abstract

One of the most fundamental descriptors of a species is its body mass, which is strongly related to life history, diet, mode of locomotion, and many other ecological factors. Despite its centrality to a species' ecology, body mass remains difficult to reconstruct reliably from elements that preserve well in the fossil record, specifically teeth and bones. This project will assess the reliability of body mass prediction from dental and skeletal microCT scan measurements using a large sample of specimens with known body masses. The relationships between these measurements and body mass will be examined and compared to previously published results. This project also provides opportunities for collaboration with fellow graduate students, and training of and collaboration with undergraduates. Training will consist of microCT scanning, digital preparation, measurement protocols, and statistical analyses. MicroCT data collected for this project will be made publicly available using a free online repository, permitting wide access to previously unavailable material. Specimens digitized for this study could readily serve as valuable teaching tools. This project seeks to explore the relationship between body mass and the joint articular surfaces of the tarsus with a focus on a wide range of primate taxa. Tarsal elements will be microCT- or laser-scanned so that joint articular surface areas can be digitally measured. The primary objective is to improve the theoretical foundation for body mass prediction by addressing whether an improved functional understanding of predictor variables (articular surface areas) permits the generation of more reliable body mass prediction equations (BMPEs). This objective will be accomplished by 1) assessing the scaling relationships of different joint articular surface areas relative to body mass in extant taxa, 2) generating novel body mass prediction equations from joint articular surface areas for comparison to previously published BMPEs, and 3) generating novel BMPEs from specimens with associated and longitudinal body mass data for comparison to BMPEs generated from specimens lacking associated body mass data. These analyses will inform two subsequent portions of the study, 1) body mass prediction for a large sample of fossil primates, and 2) a detailed examination of body mass evolution during important stages of primate diversification.