Claire Terhune

Claire Terhune

Lead Investigator

Claire received a BS in anthropology and a BA in biology from the College of Charleston in 2002. She went to graduate school at Arizona State University where she received her MA (2005) and PhD (2010) in anthropology. In 2009, Claire joined the Physician Assistant Program in the Duke University Medical Center, where she served as the primary instructor for Physician Assistant Anatomy and assisted in the Body and Brain course in the Doctor of Physical Therapy Program and was a research instructor in the Department of Evolutionary Anthropology. She joined the Department of Anthropology at the University of Arkansas in January 2014.

Not only has Claire worked in museum collections throughout North America and Europe, she has also worked extensively as an archaeologist in Arizona, excavated dinosaur remains in northern Mexico, worked on Paleolithic sites in France and Spain, done bioarchaeological fieldwork on the island of Cyprus, worked at the paleoanthropological locality of Hadar in Ethiopia, and observed howler monkeys in Costa Rica.

Valerie Contreras

Valerie Contreras

MA Student

Valerie received her bachelor’s degree in Anthropology at the University of Texas at Arlington. Post graduation she spent time working with the Human Origins and Migration Evolution Project (HOMER) at various archaeological sites in South Africa, Malawi and Italy studying material from the late Pleistocene to early Holocene. She also spent some time as an educator for the Perot Museum of Nature and Science in Dallas, Texas in the exhibit, Origins: Fossils from the Cradle of Humankind which exhibited Homo naledi and Australopithecus sediba. She began her master’s degree in Biological Anthropology at the University of Arkansas and joined the Terhune Lab in Fall 2023.  

Katie Harden

Katie Harden

Honors Undergraduate Researcher

Katie is a junior at the University of Arkansas, pursuing degrees in both anthropology and criminology, as well as a minor in psychology. She is currently working on conducting her honors thesis research on primate craniofacial trauma and its relationship to socioecological factors across species. After graduation, Katie is looking to attend graduate school and pursue a career in forensic anthropology. 

Ashley Laster

Ashley Laster

Honors Undergraduate Researcher

Ashley is a senior at the University of Arkansas, pursuing a degree in Biology and a minor in Spanish. She is currently conducting her honors thesis research on antemortem tooth loss in primates and its impact on the shape of the cranium and mandible. Ashley aspires to attend dental school after graduation.

Cristina Stan

Cristina Stan

PhD Student

Cristina received her Bachelor’s degree in Biology at University of Bucharest, Romania in 2020. Her undergraduate research focused on Pliocene-Pleistocene Cercopithecidae dentognathic fossils from Romania, and European fossil primate paleoenvironments; she also worked closely with the “Emil Racovita” Institute of Speleology where she assisted with ongoing research in paleontology. In 2024, she successfully completed her Master’s degree in Anthropology in the Terhune Lab,. Her MA research focused on dental variation in European fossil macaques. As a PhD student in the Terhune Lab she plans to focus on primate ecomorphology and intraspecific craniofacial variation.

Parker Taylor

Parker Taylor

PhD Student

Parker has a BA (2013) in Anthropology from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock (UALR) and a MS (2015) from University College London (UCL) in Human Evolution and Behaviour. At UALR, Parker focused on the relationships between primate behaviors and their environments while volunteering at the Little Rock Zoo’s Ape Enrichment program. At UCL, his master’s thesis investigated the evolution of primate natal coats across primates. As a PhD Student at the University of Arkansas, Parker is interested in human and non-human primate anatomy, morphometrics, and biomechanics. His PhD dissertation uses geometric morphometrics and diceCT techniques to investigate the relationships between the hyoid and masticatory apparatuses and their connecting musculature (i.e., the suprahyoid muscles) and their roles during swallowing. You can learn more about Parker, his past and current research, and access his CV at his personal website below.

Lab Alumni

  • Blossom Amechi, undergraduate researcher and honors student. Blossom completed her BS in Anthropology (Cum Laude) in May 2020. Her honors thesis examined shape variation and masticatory biomechanics in several populations of modern humans. She is now attending dental school.
  • Maureen Balcerzak, undergraduate researcher. Maureen completed her BS in Anthropology in May 2020. Her research in the lab focused on examining patterns of carnivore taphonomy.
  • Ashlyn Barton, undergraduate researcher. Ashlyn completed her BS in Anthropology and BA in Biology in May 2023. Her work in the lab focused on examining antemortem tooth loss and wear in primates.
  • Amber Cooper, undergraduate researcher and honors student. Amber completed her BS in Anthropology (Magna Cum Laude) in December 2022. Her honors thesis research focused on examining the anatomy of the olfactory system in primates.
  • Sarah Cumpston, undergraduate researcher. Sarah completed her BS in Anthropology in May 2016. Her interests focus on primate evolution and diet, and she completed an independent study in the Terhune Lab where she assessed statistical variation in the primate masticatory apparatus.
  • Lydia Haake, undergraduate researcher and honors student. Lydia completed her BS in Anthropology (Cum Laude) in December 2018. Lydia’s honors thesis research in the Terhune Lab was focused on figuring out the best ways to process animal remains using dermestid beetles.
  • Logan Hearp, undergraduate researcher and honors student. Logan received her BA in Anthropology with a minor in Latin American and Latino Studies, graduating Summa cum Laude in May 2020. Her work in the Terhune Lab focused on organizing and processing microCT and 3D data of mammal skulls, and her Honors Thesis research examined patterns of carnivore taphonomy. Logan is now attending graduate school to receive a Masters of Public Health.
  • Jenifer Hubbard, undergraduate student and postbaccalaureate researcher. Jenifer received her BA in Biology and BS in Anthropology from the University of Arkansas in December 2014. Jen’s work in the Terhune lab focused compiling a faunal atlas of early Pleistocene European mammals, which she put to good use in Romania working on the Oltet Valley fossil collection in May 2016. Jen is now pursuing a career in secondary education, specializing in teaching science.
  • Owen Knox, undergraduate researcher. Owen received a BA in Anthropology in May 2023. In the Terhune Lab he assisted Ashly Romero by scoring macaque tooth wear.
  • Madison McKinniss, undergraduate researcher. Madison completed her BA in Anthropology in May 2024. In the Terhune Lab Madison worked as a research assistant, segmenting masticatory muscles from diceCT scans. 
  • David Rex Mitchell, postdoctoral researcher. Dr. Mitchell was part of the Terhune Lab from May 2019 to May 2020. He received his Bachelor of Zoology with honors in 2015, followed by his PhD from the University of New England, Australia in March 2019. His interests lie in community-level ecology and he explores this through the lens of functional morphology. By employing geometric morphometrics and finite element analysis, he examines skull shape and biomechanical performance across different species in order to identify relationships between form and function in the vertebrate masticatory apparatus. In doing so, he aims to illustrate how various adaptations and constraints associated with craniomandibular anatomy may mediate niche dynamics and ultimately influence community structure. His primary research has examined herbivorous diprotodont marsupials, with a focus on kangaroos and their relatives (Macropodiformes). In the Terhune Lab he is focused on examining how primate craniofacial form varies in both normal and pathological conditions.
  • Courtney Moore, undergraduate researcher. Courtney graduate with a BS in Anthropology in May of 2018. Her work in the Terhune Lab focused on examining the relationship between cervical spine posture and temporomandibular joint disorders (TMD), using X-ray analysis and geometric morphometrics. Courtney is now pursuing a degree in nursing.
  • Taylor Polvadore, postdoctoral researcher. Dr. Polvadore was part of the Terhune lab from August 2022 through June 2024. She received her BA (2014) in Anthropology at the University of Texas at Austin with a focus on biological anthropology and mathematics and her MA (2016) and PhD (2022) in Anthropology from the University of Florida. Her research focuses on combining behavioral data collected through fieldwork with biomechanical data on both locomotory and masticatory systems. In the Terhune Lab Dr. Polvadore focused on examining soft tissue variation in and ontogeny of the masticatory system in tufted and untufted capuchins. 
  • Patricia Ramos, undergraduate researcher and honors student. Patricia graduated with a BS in Anthropology (Cum Laude) in Spring 2017. Patricia’s honors thesis research in the Terhune lab was focused on examining the trabecular structure of the primate temporomandibular joint. Patricia is completing her medical degree at the University of Arkansas Medical School.
  • Ashly Romero, MA and PhD student. Dr. Romero’s research uses geometric morphometrics to study craniofacial fluctuating asymmetry (FA). She is interested in characterizing patterns of FA and stress in primates and further investigating developmental stability in these taxa. Ashly’s Master’s thesis examined FA in chimpanzees and gorillas in comparison with growth rate, and her dissertation project investigated FA, its heritability, and stress in rhesus macaques. She is now a postdoctoral research associate at the University of Arizona College of Medicine, Phoenix.
  • Autumn Sanders, undergraduate researcher. Autumn received her BA in Archaeology with a minor in Criminal Justice in 2021. Her work in the Terhune Lab focused on processing microCT scans and 3D data of mammal skulls and teeth to aid Caitlin Yoakum with her dissertation.
  • Alice Stubbs, undergraduate researcher and honors student. Alice received her BA in Anthropology in Spring 2023. Alice’s work in the Terhune Lab focused on examining geographic and demographic patterning in attitudes toward evolution across the US.
  • J. Cameron Tilley, undergraduate researcher and honors student. Cameron graduated with a BS in Anthropology (Summa Cum Laude) with a minor in Biology in Summer 2021. Cameron’s honors thesis research in the Terhune lab was focused on looking at patterns of covariation in the cranial base and temporomandibular joint of primates. Cameron is now pursuing his medical degree at the University of Arkansas Medical School.
  • Caitlin Yoakum, PhD student and postdoctoral researcher. Dr. Yoakum was part of the Terhune Lab from 2016 to 2022. Dr. Yoakum received her BA (2014) and MA (2016) in Anthropology at Texas Tech University with a focus on forensics and classical studies. She obtained her PhD (2021) in Anthropology from the University of Arkansas where she focused on the trigeminal nerve and its relationship to the teeth and diet in primates. She then moved into a postdoctoral researcher position in the Terhune Lab to study the differences in chewing muscles between capuchin monkey species using the novel staining technique known as diceCT. Dr. Yoakum joined the Arkansas Colleges of Health Education as an Assistant Professor of Anatomy in June 2022; she continues to collaborate with the Terhune Lab.
  • Anastasia Young, undergraduate researcher. Anastasia received BAs in both History and Anthropology in May 2020. Her work in the Terhune Lab focused on 3D visualization techniques. Anastasia is now pursuing a degree in secondary education, specializing in history and social studies.

Research Collaborators

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