Thinking of my neighbors and everyone else coping with loss today. It's been a year now and a new normal still feels far away. #MarshallFire #Colorado #Louisville #Boulder #Superior

A bit late to #FossilFriday but it has been a busy week! I know this may sound bizarre, but this is arguably my favorite fossil of all time (up there with fossils like STS 14). This was strong evidence of bipedalism in Australopithecus found in 1937 (beyond evidence from the cranial base). One can see the relatively human-like bicondylar angle on this specimen, as well as a number of other traits highly suggestive of bipedal locomotion.

Baby under her favorite tree. Alas, it no longer exists but we will get her a new one before too long. #Caturday #CatsOfMastodon

#FossilFriday #BlackFriday
KNM-WT 17000 The "Black Skull" is a key early cranium (~2.5 million years old) of Paranthropus aethiopicus that is otherwise known primarily from mandibles and teeth.

Fervently hoping that posting elephant photos will convince my work to complete itself... #Academic #Elephant #KrugerNationalPark

Dangerous Creature for #Caturday

A fossil that really flies under the radar: STS 14. Early evidence of bipedalism in Australopithecus africanus that does not get enough love. #FossilFriday #Paleoanthropology #Hominins #BiologicalAnthropology

Research assistant extraodinare

Missing Kruger National Park. #Kruger #SouthAfrica

After 3.7 Ma hominins had highly varied diets isotopically--both tree products and monocots were consumed. On average they filled carbon isotope space between C3 browsers and C4 grazers. But then at 2.3 Ma the genus Paranthropus goes berserk and moves into the isotope space of the numerically dominant grazing herbivores. How they pulled this off so successfully, and without teeth seemingly suited for grass consumption, remains a bit mystifying. #fossils #hominins #diet #evolution #isotopes