Dr. Katrien Dierickx

FRESH

I am a post-doctoral researcher on the FRESH project. My background is in biology and archaeology, focusing on ecology and diversity of animals. During my masters, I became interested in zooarchaeology and the past relationship between humans, animals and the environment.

My interest in fish was further sparked as a research assistant to the MbiSa-Congo project (2017-2019), working on the diversity and ecology of modern African freshwater fish. I completed a PhD (2019-2022) in archaeology at the University of York (on medieval flatfish exploitation) as part of the SeaChanges Innovative Training Network, using comparative osteology, geometric morphometrics, and collagen peptide mass fingerprinting to identify the individual species and stable isotope analysis to infer catch habitats.

Afterwards, I continued my career in archaeozoology by studying human impacts on walruses during times of intense exploitation in various regions of their original distribution. My research is multidisciplinary, combining several methods, such as osteology, morphometrics, proteomics and stable isotope analyses, to understand the past relationship between humans and animals.

Background

Bsc Biology, KU Leuven, Belgium (2014)
Msc Biology, KU Leuven, Belgium (2016)
Academic Teacher Education, KU Leuven, Belgium (2018)
PhD in Archaeology, University of York, United Kingdom (2023)

Key Research Interests

Archaeozoology
Geometric Morphometrics
Palaeoproteomics
Stable Isotope analysis
Elemental analysis
Human-animal relationship

Main Publications

Dierickx K., Kersten O., van den Hurk Y., Frasier B., Sabin B., Star B., Barrett J., 2025. Ontogenetic changes and sexual dimorphism in the cranium and mandible of the Atlantic walrus (Odobenus rosmarus rosmarus L.). The Anatomical Record Early View. DOI: 10.1002/ar.70050
Dierickx K., Wouters W., 2025. Comparative osteology of the North Sea flatfishes (Teleostei; Pleuronectiformes). Cybium 49: 29-64. DOI: 10.26028/CYBIUM/2025-001
Dierickx K., Schauer P., Harland J., Pipe A., Oueslati T., Lehouck A., Ervynck A., Wouters W., Von Tersch M., Orton D., Alexander M., 2024. Finding the right plaice at the right time: Multi-molecular analysis of flatfish reveal historical catch habitats. Fish and Fisheries 25: 811-822. DOI: 10.1111/faf.12847
Dierickx K., Oueslati T., Profico A., 2023. Geometric morphometric analysis of Pleuronectiformes vertebrae: a new tool to identify archaeological fish remains? Journal of Anatomy 243: 982-996. DOI: 10.1111/joa.13934
Dierickx K., Presslee S., Harvey V.L., 2023. Rapid collagen peptide mass fingerprinting as a tool to authenticate Pleuronectiformes in the food industry. Food Control 148: 109680. DOI: 10.1016/j.foodcont.2023.109680
Dierickx K., Presslee S., Hagan R., Oueslati T., Harland J., Hendy J., Orton D., Alexander M., Harvey V., 2022. Peptide mass fingerprinting of preserved collagen in archaeological fish bones for the identification of flatfish in European waters. Royal Society Open Science 9: 220149. DOI: 10.1098/rsos.220149
Van Neer W., Alhaique F., Wouters W., Dierickx K., Gala M., Goffette Q., Mariani G.S., Zerboni A., di Lernia S., 2020. Aquatic fauna from the Takarkori rock shelter reveals the Holocene central Saharan climate and palaeohydrography. PLoS ONE 15(2): e0228588. DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0228588

katrien.dierickx@vub.be