Dissertation Research: Dietary Reconstruction in Small- Bodied Fossil Primates

人类学家确定人类活动的各个方面的能力 从动物牙列的形态特征看动物的食性 近年来，特别是通过使用 扫描电子显微镜（SEM） 检查牙齿的微小磨损特征。 的 主要研究者将利用该技术确定 不同哺乳动物的食物种类，包括灵长类， 并利用这些信息来推断 早期新生代灵长类的一个重要类群，长眼猴科。 这 这项研究将是第一个定量评估假设， 早期灵长类化石的饮食重建。 的潜在 这项研究的应用，以了解饮食方面的 其他化石分类群也很棒。

The ability of anthropologists to determine aspects of an animal's diet from morphological characteristics of its dentition has greatly increased in recent years, especially through the use of new techniques such as SEM (scanning electron microscope) examination of minute wear characteristics of the teeth. The Principal Investigators will utilize this technique to determine food categories of a diverse group mammals, including primates, and use this information to make inferences about the diet of an important group of Early Cenozoic primates, the Omomyidae. This study will be the first to assess quantitatively hypotheses about dietary reconstruction of early fossil primates. The potential application of this study for understanding dietary aspects of other fossil taxa is great.