Elizabeth R. Dumont

Associate Professor
bdumont@bio.umass.edu Laboratory Web Page

Education
B.A., Indiana University (Bloomington), 1985

M.A., SUNY at Stony Brook, 1989

Ph.D., SUNY at Stony Brook, 1993

Research Interests

Although mammals are only a small fraction of living vertebrates, they have a significant impact on terrestrial and aquatic communities throughout the world. Despite their relatively limited numbers, mammals are anatomically and behaviorally diverse. One need only imagine a mouse next to a whale to realize that the world's 4,650 species of mammals come in a tremendous variety of sizes and shapes. This variation reflects the adaptations of mammals to a wide array of habitats that offer different rewards and challenges to the species that reside in them. Food is essential to survival and one of the most fundamental interactions between animals and their environment is that of feeding. The jaws and teeth of mammals are remarkably diverse and reflect the variety of dietary specializations within the group.

The over-riding goal of my research is to understand the evolution of feeding strategies in mammals. This requires integration of data from a number of sources. One area of my research is analyzing the variation in anatomy associated with feeding. In my lab we study skull and tooth shape from the perspective of their mechanical functions using techniques ranging from confocal and scanning electron microscopy through multivariate statistics and mathematical analyses of bone cross-sections. While laboratory analysis tells us a lot about bone/tooth function, it is also important to understand how animals use their anatomy under natural conditions. To that end, I also maintain an active field-based research program focused on documenting variation in feeding behavior within and among closely related species. By coupling lab-based anatomical studies with field-based behavioral studies, we can begin to understand the ecological context in which diversity of feeding strategies evolved. With anatomical and behavioral data in hand, I also apply modern phylogenetic techniques to ask fundamental questions about the strength of associations between anatomy and behavior in the evolution of mammalian feeding.

Most recently, my work has focused on fruit bats as model organisms for answering questions about the evolution of feeding in mammals. Diverse fruit bat communities have evolved independently in the New and Old world tropics. This "natural experiment" offers a unique opportunity to study the interaction between anatomy, behavior, and ecology. Current fieldwork with these animals takes me to Central America, Australia and Papua New Guinea. I have also worked on marsupials and primates and look forward to learning about other groups. My career goal is to make a significant contribution to understanding mammalian evolution. I hope to accomplish this at UMass through independent research efforts, collaboration with my colleagues, training graduate students and mentoring undergraduates with interests in evolutionary biology.

Representative Publications

E.R. Dumont, S.T. Sakai, B.L. Lundrigan, and K.E. Holekamp. In press. Of arcs and vaults: The biomechanics of bone-cracking in spotted hyenas (Crocuta crocuta). Biological Journal of the Linnean Society.

Dumont, E.R. and S. Swartz. In Press. Biomechanical approaches and ecological research. In Ecological and Behavioral Methods for the Study of Bats, T.H. Kunz and G. Jones (eds).

Carmody K.L., M.P. Mooney, G.M. Cooper, C.J. Bonar, M.I. Siegel, E.R. Dumont, and T.D. Smith. 2008. Relationship of premaxillary bone and its sutures to deciduous dentition in non human primates. Cleft Palate Craniofacial Journal, 45(1): 93–100.

Dumont, E.R. 2007. Feeding mechanisms in bats: Variation within the constraints of flight. Integrative and Comparative Biology, 47: 137-146.

Grosse, I.R., E.R. Dumont, A. Tolleson and C.E. Coletta. 2007. Techniques for modeling muscle-induced forces in finite element models of skeletal structures. Anatomical Record - Advances in Integrative Anatomy and Evolutionary Biology, 290(9): 1069-1088.

Dumont, E.R. and C.W. Nicolay. 2006. Cross-sectional geometry of the dentary in plant-visiting bats. Zoology, 109: 66-74.

Dumont, E.R. 2006. The correlated evolution of cranial morphology and feeding behavior in new world fruit bats. Pp. 160-177 In Functional and Ecological Morphology of Bats. T.H. Kunz, G. McCraken, and Z. Akbar (eds). Oxford University Press, New York.

Dumont, E.R., J. Piccirillo, and I.R. Grosse. 2005. Finite element analysis of biting behavior and bone stress in the facial skeletons of bats. The Anatomical Record, 293: 319-330.

Dumont, E.R., G. W. Weiblen, and J. Winkelmann. 2004. Preferences of fig wasps and fruit bats for figs of functionally dioecious Ficus pungens. Journal of Tropical Ecology, 20: 233-238.

Dumont, E.R. and R. O’Neil. 2004. Fruit hardness, feeding behavior, and resource partitioning in Old World fruit bats (Family Pteropodidae). Journal of Mammalogy, 85: 8-14.

Vandoros, J. D. and E.R. Dumont. 2004. Use of the wings in manipulative and suspensory behaviors during feeding by frugivorous bats. Journal of Experimental Zoology, 301: 361-366.

Dumont, E.R. 2004. Patterns of diversity in cranial shape among plant-visiting bats. Acta Chiropterologica, 6: 59-74.

Dumont, E.R. and A. Herrel. 2003. The effects of gape angle and bite point on bite force in bats. Journal of Experimental Biology, 206: 2117-2123.

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