title: Development: evolutionary ecology's midwife.
abstract: We agree with Henrich et al. that documenting cultural universality and variability provides an indispensable window into human nature. We want to stress the mediating role development plays between evolution and culture. Moving beyond the mere documentation of universality or variability, developmental approaches can provide mechanistic explanations, linking ecology to phenotype. Combining phylogeny and adaptationism, evolutionary approaches can explain the properties of developmental systems.
authors.affiliation: Center for Behavior, Evolution, and Culture, Department of Anthropology, University of California-Los Angles, CA 90095-1553, USA. karthikpanchanathan@gmail.com
authors.forename: Karthik
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Panchanathan
authors.forename: Willem E
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Frankenhuis
authors.forename: H Clark
authors.initials: HC
authors.lastname: Barrett
mesh_terms: D000220:Adaptation, Biological; D005075:Biological Evolution; D003469:Culture; D006801:Humans; D012641:Selection, Genetic; D012919:Social Behavior