Christopher Gilbert

Christopher Gilbert is a Professor of Biological Anthropology at Hunter College and the Ph.D. Program in Anthropology at the CUNY Graduate Center. He is also a member of NYCEP and a Research Associate in the Division of Paleontology at the American Museum of Natural History.

His educational background includes a PhD from Stony Brook University in 2008. His primary research interests span primate evolution throughout the past 65 million years, with specific focus on:

• Neogene primate evolution, biochronology, and biogeography in Africa and Asia
• Evolutionary history and phylogenetic systematics of catarrhines
• Plio-Pleistocene cercopithecoids and their relationship to hominin evolution
• Paleocene-Eocene primate and mammalian ecomorphology, diversity, biogeography, and evolution
• Character coding methodology in phylogenetic analysis and comparison of cladistic and morphometric methods

Professor Gilbert's recent research has focused on several major projects:

• Cercopithecoid Evolutionary History and Its Relationship to Hominin Biochronology (Wenner-Gren funded)
• Primate Evolution in the Indian Lower Siwaliks (NSF and Leakey Foundation funded)
• Nyanzapithecus alesi and its implications for hominoid evolution
• Early Eocene Primate Evolution: Paleoenvironmental and Paleoecological Responses to Climate Change
• Taxonomy and Evolutionary Morphology of the Guenons (Tribe Cercopithecini)

His publication record shows a strong trend toward interdisciplinary research combining paleontology, evolutionary biology, and anthropology. His work frequently involves international collaboration with researchers from institutions across the United States and abroad, particularly in India and Africa. His research spans both fieldwork and laboratory analysis, with a particular emphasis on phylogenetic methods and biochronology.

Among his notable scientific contributions are:

• Recognition of new primate taxa in the Siwalik Hills of India
• Reassessment of baboon evolution and biochronology
• Phylogenetic analyses of African papionins using combined morphological and molecular data

Professor Gilbert has mentored numerous students, many of whom have become co-authors on his publications. His research has been supported by major funding agencies including the National Science Foundation, Wenner-Gren Foundation, and Leakey Foundation. He has conducted paleontological fieldwork in multiple international locations, including the Siwalik Hills in India and the Wind River Basin in Wyoming.

His laboratory and research team include undergraduate and graduate students who participate in fieldwork and analysis. His work with the NYCEP and AMNH provides additional resources and collaborative opportunities for his research program.