Carson Murray
Title — Assistant Professor of Anthropology
Office — 2114 G St. 302
Lab: 2147 G Street
Phone — (202) 994-4170
Lab Phone: (202) 994-4186
E-mail — cmmurray@email.gwu.edu
Areas of Expertise —
Biological Anthropology
Adaptive value of social relationships, both on a behavioral and a biochemical level, among chimpanzees; effects of maternal stress and behavior on offspring.
Current Research
Dr. Murray is a primate behavioral ecologist who studies the adaptive value of social relationships. She is currently investigating this in the context of the mother-infant relationship, particularly how maternal stress and behavior influence offspring outcomes.
Ongoing Projects:
- The relationship of mother-infant interaction to adrenocortical activity and offspring development, health, and stress in wild chimpanzees.
- Comparative primate studies on the influence of non-kin social relationships on offspring success.
- The adaptive value of friendships among female chimpanzees.
- Factors producing higher reproductive success of higher-ranking females.
Education
For Dr. Murray's CV, click here
Ph.D. 2006, University of Minnesota
B.A. 1997, University of Virginia
Publications
Selected Articles and Book Chapters
2010 Jones, J.H., M.L. Wilson, C.M. Murray, and A.E. Pusey. "Phenotypic quality influences fertility in Gombe Chimpanzees," Journal of Animal Ecology 79(6): 1262-1269.
2009 Murray, C.M., E.V. Lonsdorf, L.E. Eberly, and A.E. Pusey. "Rank-dependent reproductive energetics in free-living female chimpanzees," Behavioral Ecology 20: 1211-1216.
2008 Murray, C.M., I. Gilby, S.V. Mane, and A.E. Pusey. "Male chimpanzees inherit maternal ranging patterns," Current Biology 18: 20-24.
2006 Murray, C.M., L.E. Eberly, and A.E. Pusey. "Foraging strategies as a function of season and rank among wild female chimpanzees," Behavioral Ecology 17: 1020-1028.
Classes Taught
Anth 1005 (old 005): Biological Bases of Human Behavior
Anth 3411 (148): Primatology
Anth 3491 (149): Topics: Evolution of Mothering