Dr. Pante is a paleoanthropologist interested in the evolution and feeding behavior of early members of the human genus (Homo). His current work is at Olduvai Gorge, Tanzania where he is the senior zooarchaeologist for the Olduvai Geochronology and Archaeology Project (OGAP), a collaborator with the Olduvai Landscape Paleoanthropology Project (OLAPP), and a co-director of the Olduvai Project field school. Dr. Pante examines the butchery and tooth marks left by both human ancestors and carnivores on fossils to unravel the feeding behavior and ecology of early humans. His current research is focused on understanding the impact of meat and marrow consumption on human evolution through the study of 1.5-1.8 million year old fossil assemblages. These assemblages coincide with a technological revolution that occurred when our ancestors abandoned the first and most primitive stone technology, called the Oldowan, and began to produce more sophisticated stone tools known as Acheulean handaxes. This transition was a pivotal moment in human evolution and is associated with the appearance of a new species, Homo erectus, and with a dietary shift towards increasing carnivory that may have been central to the evolution of our own species, Homo sapiens. Dr. Pante has published his research in the Journal of Human Evolution and Journal of Archaeological Science, in addition to contributing to encyclopedias and participating in outreach programs to educate the public on human evolution.

Research

Prehistoric archaeology; zooarchaeology; paleoanthropology; taphonomy; paleodiet; stable isotope ecology; human evolution

Olduvai Geochronology Archaeology Project