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Martin Welker

Martin Welker

Ph.D. Graduate, 2018
University Park, PA 16802
Martin Welker

Curriculum Vitae

Education

2018 Ph. D., Anthropology, The Pennsylvania State Unviersity
2015 M.A., Anthropology, The Pennsylvania State University
2013 B.S., Anthropology, Utah State University

Professional Bio

Professional Bio

I am an environmental archaeologist specializing in zooarchaeology and biomorphometrics. I am especially interested in the use of quantitative big data analyses to explore aspects of human subsistence, the management and adaptation of domesticated animal species, and species translocation. My dissertation research centers on the detection of breeds in the archaeological record, and understanding how extreme phenotypic variation seen in domestic dogs reflects their roles within European and Native American societies. Included in my dissertation are an exploration of the ways in which colonial European preferences for large working dogs impacted the phenotypic variability in colonial dog populations (Rebecca Dunham -Parks Canada), and a validation study of ethnographically recorded travois and panner-style pack loads carried by Native American dogs (Dr. David Byers -Utah State University). I have ongoing projects investigating colonial European dietary patterns at the Fortress of Louisbourg in Nova Scotia, early colonial cattle (Stéphane Noel -Laval University), and the spatial and temporal patterns of morphological variability in Native American dogs (Eric Jones -Wake Forest College). I am also actively involved in the analysis of material from Neolithic sites in Croatia (Dr. Sarah McClure). I also served as the field director for the 2015 and 2016 seasons of the Penn State Archaeological Field School at Foster Farm, a 19-20th century farmstead in Pennsylvania.