Daniel Benítez is currently a PhD Candidate in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Kentucky, exploring biological kinship and sex-based dispersal in pre-Columbian populations of the Eastern Andes of modern-day Colombia. Daniel is investigating post-marital residence patterns of the indigenous Muisca communities before European contact. Daniel has also previously worked on biological kinship relationships in pre-Columbian Florida. His focus is on examining dental morphological variation and dental wear patterns across populations, and on using quantitative genetics and microwear approaches to analyze biocultural relationships among pre-Columbian communities. 

Daniel completed his BA in anthropology at Florida Atlantic University in 2015. He continued his education at the same institution for his Master’s degree in anthropology, where he studied population affinities among two pre-Columbian indigenous populations located in southern Florida. He has also gained extensive experience in cultural resource management and has been part of multiple projects across Florida.