The Early Cretaceous coastal lake Konservat-Lagerstätte of La Pedrera de Meià (Southern Pyrenees)

A state of the art of the Barremian Konservat-Lagerstätte of la Pedrera de Meià site (Southern Pyrenees) is compiled here including the acquisition of new geological data. The relevance of this site, together with the nearby la Cabroa site, is due to its paleobiotic richness and the fact that 113 holotypes and paratypes of flora and fauna have already been defined. Since its discovery at the end of the 19th century and its exploitation as a lithographic limestone quarry, the site has been the object of paleontological interest by national and foreign research teams that are summarized here (including the catalogue of 223 publications). A survey of the existing type specimens in collections all over Europe is also provided, being France and Germany, the countries where more fossils are hosted other than Spain. The geological frame of this site is also reviewed, by revisiting unpublished geological mappings (mainly that of Krusat, 1966) and integrating it in a comprehensive map that includes 4 revisited outcrops of lithographic limestone which could be potential paleontological sites. The available stratigraphic sections did allow the precise location of paleontological data and findings and environmental proxies. The stratigraphic sections obtained have a thickness of about 50m and contain a minimum of 40.000 limestone layers, being an approximation of the years represented in the la Pedrera de Meià site, and the time expanded of the lake during the Barremian

Stratigraphic and structural controls on groundwater flow in an outcropping fossil fan delta: the case of Sant Llorenç del Munt range (NE Spain)

The final publication is available at Springer via http://dx.doi.org/10.1007/s10040-017-1618-9Hydrogeological models of mountain regions present the opportunity to understand the role of geological factors on groundwater resources. The effects of sedimentary facies and fracture distribution on groundwater flow and resource exploitation are studied in the ancient fan delta of Sant Llorenç de Munt (central Catalonia, Spain) by integrating geological field observations (using sequence stratigraphy methods) and hydrogeological data (pumping tests, hydrochemistry and environmental isotopes). A comprehensive analysis of data portrays the massif as a single unit, constituted by different compartments determined by specific layers and sets of fractures. Two distinct flow systems—local and regional—are identified based on pumping test analysis as well as hydrochemical and isotopic data. Drawdown curves derived from pumping tests indicate that the behavior of the saturated layers, whose main porosity is given by the fracture network, corresponds to a confined aquifer. Pumping tests also reflect a double porosity within the system and the occurrence of impervious boundaries that support a compartmentalized model for the whole aquifer system. Hydrochemical data and associated spatial evolution show the result of water–rock interaction along the flow lines. Concentration of magnesium, derived from dolomite dissolution, is a tracer of the flow-path along distinct stratigraphic units. Water stable isotopes indicate that evaporation (near a 5% loss) occurs in a thick unsaturated zone within the massif before infiltration reaches the water table. The hydrogeological analysis of this outcropping system provides a methodology for the conceptualization of groundwater flow in similar buried systems where logging and hydrogeological information are scarce.Peer ReviewedPostprint (author's final draft

Integrated multi-stratigraphic study of the Coll de Terrers late Permian-Early Triassic continental succession from the Catalan Pyrenees (NE Iberian Peninsula): A geologic reference record for equatorial Pangaea

The most severe biotic crisis on Earth history occurred during the Permian-Triassic (PT) transition around 252 Ma. Whereas in the marine realm such extinction event is well-constrained, in terrestrial settings it is still poorly known, mainly due to the lack of suitable complete sections. This is utterly the case along the Western Tethys region, located at Pangaea's equator, where terrestrial successions are typically build-up of red beds often characterised by a significant erosive gap at the base of the Triassic strata. Henceforth, documenting potentially complete terrestrial successions along the PT transition becomes fundamental. Here, we document the exceptional Coll de Terrers area from the Catalan Pyrenees (NE Iberian Peninsula), for which a multidisciplinary research is conducted along the PT transition. The red-bed succession, located in a long E-W extended narrow rift system known as Pyrenean Basin, resulted from a continuous sedimentary deposition evolving from meandering (lower Upper Red Unit) to playa-lake/ephemeral lacustrine (upper Upper Red Unit) and again to meandering settings (Buntsandstein facies). Sedimentary continuity is suggested by preliminary cyclostratigraphic analysis that warrants further analysis. Our combined sedimentological, mineralogical and geochemical data infer a humid-semiarid-humid climatic trend across the studied succession. The uppermost Permian strata, deposited under an orbitally controlled monsoonal regime, yields a relatively diverse ichnoassemblage mainly composed of tetrapod footprints and arthropod trace fossils. Such fossils indicate appropriate life conditions and water presence in levels that also display desiccation structures. These levels alternate with barren intervals formed under dry conditions, being thus indicative of strong seasonality. All these features are correlated with those reported elsewhere in Gondwana and Laurasia, and suggest that the Permian-Triassic boundary might be recorded somewhere around the Buntsandstein base. Consequently, Coll de Terrers and the whole Catalan Pyrenees become key regions to investigate in detail the Permian extinction event and the Triassic ecosystems recovery

New stratigraphically constrained palaeoenvironmental reconstructions for the first human settlement in Western Europe : The Early Pleistocene herpetofaunal assemblages from Barranco Leon and Fuente Nueva 3 (Granada, SE Spain)

The Early Pleistocene sites of Barranco Leon and Fuente Nueva 3 (Guadix-Baza Basin, SE Spain) have yielded abundant Oldowan lithic artifacts and one hominin tooth (Homo sp. in level D1 or D2 of Barranco Leon), today considered to be among the earliest evidence for a hominin presence in Western Europe, at ca. 1.4-1.2 Ma. Here, for the first time, the stratigraphic succession of these two sites are studied more precisely from a palaeoenvironmental point of view, taking into account the different levels of the depositional sequences to analyze the successive fossil assemblages of amphibians and reptiles. Palaeoenvironmental reconstructions are carried out by applying the "habitat weighting" method, which uses the modern distribution by habitat of amphibian and reptile species in order to interpret past landscapes. The successive herpetofaunal assemblages from Barranco Leon show a certain tendency towards more arid conditions from level D1 to level E, whereas in Fuente Nueva 3 environmental reconstructions reveal oscillating conditions, with a tendency towards more arid conditions in the basal part of the sequence, up to level 5, where the tendency shifts back to more humid conditions. Our results show that the layers included in this study with the highest density of anthropic evidence (such as level 5 in FN 3 and levels D1 and D2 in BL) are situated within the late Early Pleistocene climatic and environmental cyclicity, yielding different environmental conditions: a humid, wooded biotope for BL, and a more open and drier biotope in FN 3. This suggests that the hominins of the late Early Pleistocene, although conditioned to some extent by climatic factors, were able to cope with changing environmental conditions, both "interglacial" and "glacial", in the southwestern extremity of the European continent. (C) 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.Peer reviewe

Taphonomic and spatial analyses from the Early Pleistocene site of Venta Micena 4 (Orce, Guadix-Baza Basin, southern Spain)

Venta Micena is an area containing several palaeontological sites marking the beginning of the Calabrian stage (Early Pleistocene). The richness of the fossil accumulation including species of Asian, African and European origin, makes Venta Micena a key site for the the palaeoecological and palaeoenvironmental study of southern Europe during the Early Pleistocene. Thus, research has been focused on Venta Micena 3, which was originally interpreted as a single palaeosurface associated with a marshy context, in which most of the fauna was accumulated by Pachycrocuta brevirostris. Recent excavations have unearthed a new site, Venta Micena 4, located in the same stratigraphic unit (Unit C) and in close proximity to Venta Micena 3. Here we show the first analyses regarding the taphonomic and spatial nature of this new site, defining two stratigraphic boundaries corresponding to two different depositional events. Furthermore, the taphonomic analyses of fossil remains seem to indicate a different accumulative agent than Pachycrocuta, thus adding more complexity to the palaeobiological interpretation of the Venta Micena area. These results contribute to the discussion of traditional interpretations made from Venta Micena 3.Peer reviewe

Productions and technical knowledge in the Early Neolithic in Catalonia

The development of the economic activities inherent to the establishment of Neolithic farming activities entails an increasing technical specialization. This is often visible through the exploitation of specific resources, the development of suitable techniques for the manufacture of consumption goods as well as new ways of using and consuming them. We briefly present the main features of the technical productions carried out by the first Neolithic populations in the northeast of Iberia, trying to characterize the technical knowledge spent on all of them and making their signs of specialization clear.[FR] Le développement des activités économiques inhérent à l’implantation des activités agricoles et d’élevage du Néolithique entraîne une spécialisation technique croissante. Cela se traduit souvent par l’exploitation de ressources spécifiques, le développement de techniques appropriées pour la fabrication de biens de consommation, et de nouvelles façons de les utiliser et de les consommer. Nous présentons brièvement les principales caractéristiques des productions techniques réalisées par les premières populations néolithiques du nord-est de la péninsule ibérique, en essayant de caractériser les connaissances techniques dépensées dans chacune d’elles et en mettant en évidence leurs indications de spécialisation

Use of meat resources in the Early Pleistocene assemblages from Fuente Nueva 3 (Orce, Granada, Spain) (vol 13, 213, 2021)

Correction to: Archaeological and Anthropological Sciences (2021) 13: 213Peer reviewe