Kevin Mulcahy

Kevin Mulcahy is a 2024-2028 Self Graduate Fellow pursuing a PhD in the Department of Ecology and Evolutionary Biology at the University of Kansas. Kevin is a vertebrate paleontologist whose research focuses primarily on the evolution of mammals following the extinction of the non-avian dinosaurs. Originally from a small town outside of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Kevin has had a lifelong passion for paleontology. He earned a B.S. in Biological Sciences and a B.A. in anthropology from the University of Pittsburgh in 2022, both with highest honors. 

Kevin is interested in the life histories of extinct animals and is currently applying novel statistical approaches to investigate sexual dimorphism in early mammals. He also conducts fieldwork in Montana, where he is studying a ~45-million-year-old Eocene fossil assemblage from a rare, high-relief montane paleoenvironment. He hopes this research will provide valuable insights into the ways animals persist and evolve through bouts of global climate change, particularly in highly vulnerable ecosystems. 

Mentor: Dr. K. Christopher Beard, Senior Curator, Biodiversity Institute, Distinguished Foundation Professor