William L. Jungers Distinguished Teaching Professor and Chair Ph.D., University of Michigan - 1976 William.Jungers@stonybrook.edu phone: 631 444-3122 fax: 631 444-3947

Functional morphology, paleoanthropology, primate evolution, morphometrics

Dr. Jungers is participating in the description and analysis of the newly discovered fossils from Indonesia, Homo floresiensis (the "hobbits"). The osteological remains from Liang Bua reveal a surprising mosaic of primitive and derived features, and the locomotor skeleton recalls that seen in australopithecines and earliest Homo in many respects (pelvic shape, limb proportions, shoulder anatomy, wrist and foot morphology and cross-sectional geometry). There is no credible evidence that these fossils exhibit systemic pathology of any sort; pathology does not recapitulate phylogeny.

Fieldwork continues in Madagascar. New species continue to be discovered and diagnosed, improved reconstructions of paleo-communities are now available, range extensions of living species are documented, and life histories are being revealed along with dietary and positional preferences. Extinction of the giant lemurs is now seen as a slow, synergistic process implicating habitat destruction, hunting and climate change. Giant lemurs co-existed with the earliest human colonizers of Madagascar for well over a millenium.

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