 Propithecus verreauxi, Antserananomby, western Madagascar |
I am interested in the response of mammalian faunas to environmental change, both in the past and present. My dissertation research involves the paleoenvironmental reconstruction of Ankilitelo, a late Holocene cave-site in southwestern Madagascar. Madagascar suffered significant ecological transformation during the Quaternary with the extinction of an amazing diversity of megafauna, including giant lemurs, elephant birds and pygmy hippos. Megafaunal extinctions have been documented from subfossil sites in virtually every region of Madagascar, and this evidence points to interregional disparities in the tempo and potential cause of the extinctions. Therefore, to arrive at a better understanding of human impact and/or environmental change in Madagascar, regional records of ecological history must be developed. In particular, southwestern Madagascar is an area of great significance because it documents both the earliest arrival of humans to Madagascar (~2000 years B.P.), and the latest survival of giant subfossil lemurs (~500 years B.P.).
My research draws on microvertebrate paleontology to develop a paleoecological framework for the giant subfossil lemurs in southwestern Madagascar. Ankilitelo is unique in that preservation of giant lemurs (Palaeopropithecus, Megaladapis, and Archaeolemur) occurs in association with paleoecologically-relevant small vertebrates, including primates, tenrecs, carnivores, rodents, bats, reptiles, reptiles and birds. By reconstructing the ecology of the microvertebrate assemblage at Ankilitelo, I will be able to compare the taxonomic and ecological relationships of the Holocene fauna with modern forests in Madagascar, and address hypotheses for the extinction of giant lemurs in the southwestern region of the island. |
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The recent loss of the subfossil lemurs in Madagascar is an example of the kind of extinction that threatens biodiversity worldwide. Investigators have documented the decline of numerous Malagasy taxa citing similar causes to those that have been hypothesized in the fossil record. The results of this project will illustrate ways in which species are affected by dramatic changes to their ecosystem, and will inform conservation efforts in Madagascar.
My dissertation research is supported by the National Science Foundation (Award No. 0408732), the Geological Society of America, Sigma Xi and Lambda Alpha. In addition to my dissertation research, I am also interested in the evolution of Paleogene mammalian faunas, with an emphasis on primate evolution and paleoecology. I have participated in fieldwork in Wyoming, Utah, Hungary, Ethiopia and Madagascar. I have studied fossil collections in Antananarivo, Madagascar; Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; Cairo, Egypt; Stuttgart, Germany; Paris and Montpellier, France; Ann Arbor and St. Louis, USA; and Toronto, Canada. |
 Palaeopropithecus ingens maxilla, Ankilitelo, southwestern Madagascar |