Affiliate Labs
DeLeon Lab at UF Anthropology
The DeLeon Lab supports trainees in their exploration of the mechanisms that give rise to biological variation. Our research integrates morphometric analyses, 3D imaging, and comparative anatomy to investigate how interactions between bone and soft tissue shape cranial growth and evolution in primates. Through interdisciplinary collaboration and open science, we advance fundamental knowledge of vertebrate biology while sharing our discoveries through publications, interactive models, and storytelling.
Prieto Laboratory
Prieto received his Ph.D. in Anthropology in 2015 from Yale University, specializing in Andean archaeology. He became faculty at the University of Florida in 2019. Dr. Prieto’s primary research interest is the study of ancient maritime adaptations in the South Pacific coast, with a focus on the North Coast of Peru. Prieto’s research is also devoted to a long term and multidisciplinary project focused on ritualized human violence in ancient times. At Huanchaco and Huanchaquito, his team has uncovered what is considered the largest ancient child and camelids sacrifice ever found in the world. The exceptional conservation of the human and camelid remains allowed to study the sacrificial event in great detail, as well as explore patterns of health through skeletal analysis, diet through isotopic analysis (both in children and camelids), provenience and the role played by climatic alterations in the North Coast of Peru such as El Niño Southern Oscillation (ENSO). Prieto is currently investigating ancient shark centra using the X-ray equipment at the CAPHIL laboratory as a proxy for the identification of shark species that were captured in Prehispanic times in the North Coast of Peru.