Amanda G. Henry

Amanda G. Henry is an Assistant Research Professor of Anthropology at the Max Planck Institute in Leipzig, Germany. She leads the Max Planck Research Group on Plant Foods in Hominin Dietary Ecology, focusing on plant-based diets in early hominins, phytolith analysis, and starch grain studies as markers of dietary and environmental adaptation. Her work integrates archaeological, paleontological, and experimental methods to understand human evolution through dietary evidence.

Dr. Henry holds a Ph.D. in Hominid Paleobiology from The George Washington University (2010) and a B.A. from Brown University (2002). Her research emphasizes Pleistocene hominin dietary ecology, including studies on Neanderthal food consumption patterns, Australopithecus sediba diets, and the role of cooking in early human diets. She pioneered the use of dental calculus microfossils to reconstruct ancient diets, contributing to debates about plant food utilization and meat consumption in hominin evolution.

Her publications span 2007–2015, covering topics from starch grain thermal alteration to Neanderthal ecological adaptations. While no specific awards or grants are listed, her work demonstrates significant contributions to understanding hominin dietary strategies through interdisciplinary approaches. She teaches Biological Anthropology and actively contributes to research on hominin taxonomy and dietary inference methodologies.

Dr. Henry’s research group focuses on plant-food ecology’s role in shaping human evolution, combining fieldwork, lab analysis, and theoretical frameworks to explore how dietary choices influenced hominin survival and adaptation across environments.