ABOUT THIS EPISODE
Dr Catalina I. Villamil is a biological anthropologist whose research explores how the primate spine evolves and what it can tell us about the origins of bipedalism in humans. From living monkeys to fossil hominins, her work bridges genetics, anatomy, and evolution to explain how our backbone came to be.
Dr Villamil is Associate Director of the Laboratory of Primate Morphology at the Caribbean Primate Research Center, where she studies the heritability and phenotypic integration of the primate vertebral column. Her research uses one of the world’s most important long-term primate populations, the Cayo Santiago rhesus macaques, to investigate how vertebral traits are inherited and constrained through evolution.
In this interview, Dr Villamil shares her career path and key research contributions, including why Cayo Santiago is so valuable for evolutionary and biomedical research. She explains how vertebral morphology is measured and analysed, discusses insights from her work on gibbons and fossil hominins, and explores what hybridization can tell us about primate evolution. The conversation also turns to the evolution of upright walking, the anatomical foundations of bipedalism, and how vertebral variation shapes locomotion.
She also reflects on her role as Associate Editor at the Journal of Human Evolution, the future of academic publishing, and the challenges and opportunities facing researchers today.
