Alfonso Arribas

• PhD
• Científico Titular at Instituto Geológico y Minero de España-CSIC

Over the last decades, there has been an increasing interest on the chronology, distribution and mammal taxonomy (including hominins) related with the faunal turnovers that took place around the Pliocene-Pleistocene transition [ca. 1.8 mega-annum (Ma)] in Europe. However, these turnovers are not fully understood due to: the precarious nature of the...

The chronology of the first colonization of Europe by hominids has been a rather controversial issue until this decade, with most palaeoanthropologists claiming that there was no significant habitation until Middle Pleistocene times. However, recent findings in Spain, Italy, Georgia and China, as well as the re-evaluation of the evidence from Java...

We report taphonomic and palaeoecologic data on the rich, diverse and well preserved assemblage of large mammals from lower Pleistocene deposits at Venta Micena (Orce, Granada, south-east Spain). The biostratinomic and diagenetic characteristics of the assemblage are congruous with the sedimentary context deduced from the study of the site, and bot...

This work describes a new finding of Anancus arvernensis—a maxilla fragment that preserves M2 and M3—from the earliest Pleistocene (c.a. 2.5-2.4 Ma) at the Fonelas SCC-3 site (Cuenca de Guadix, Granada, Spain). This fossil is attributed to a new chronosubspecies based on the combination of anatomical features shown by M3: a primitive anatomical pat...

Granada Geopark, covering almost all of the Guadix-Baza basin, contains an exceptional and near-continuous fossil record of the evolution of Pliocene to middle Pleistocene land mammals (5-0.5 Ma). This period covers the endorheic (closed drainage basin) stage of this geological basin and, in this chronological framework, its record of the Quaternar...

The Iberian Peninsula is a key region for unraveling human settlement histories of Eurasia during the period spanning the decline of Neandertals and the emergence of anatomically modern humans (AMH). There is no evidence of human occupation in central Iberia after the disappearance of Neandertals ~42,000 years ago until approximately 26,000 years a...

La provincia de Granada cuenta con un nuevo geoparque perteneciente a la Red mundial de la UNESCO desde el pasado año 2020. La singular y excepcional geología relacionada con la cuenca de Guadix-Baza, su registro del Cuaternario, sus paisajes inalterados y su patrimonio geológico (paleontológico) de relevancia internacional (Geosites, Ley 42/2007 d...

La Cueva de Nerja (Maro, témino municipal de Nerja, provincia de Málaga, S de España) contiene un importante yacimiento arqueológico en la zona de su antigua entrada (salas de la Torca, de la Mina y del Vestíbulo) cuya cronología se encuentra comprendida entre ca. 25.000 y ca. 3.000 años BP, secuencia que cubre el Pleistoceno superior final y gran...

The interior of the Iberian Peninsula has orographic conditions that make this territory especially vulnerable to Quaternary climate oscillations and which actually could have made it decisive for Paleolithic human populations at critical points. For this reason, the information provided by paleon-tological sites is important for reconstructing cli...

During the last International Congress of Paleobotany and Palynology (Dublin, 2018), participants discussed Paleoecology through the lens of Art and Science. These talks identified an urgent need for a more synergistic interaction between the visual arts and the sciences. Importantly, such consilience could inform research. This is because, while f...

Pleistocene human remains are rare inland on the Iberian Peninsula. Most are considered Neandertals, but anthropological analyses and direct dating are rare. Recently, we published a study of a navicular from this region found in the Torrejones Cave. The results showed it differed from that of Neandertals and it was re-identified as Homo sapiens. F...

Evidence of human activity and hominin remains are very scarce inland on the Iberian Peninsula. This fact raises the issue of the scarcity of evidence that Paleolithic Homo sapiens occupied this area outside of the littoral margins (Atlantic, Cantabrian, and Mediterranean coasts). Here, we comparatively describe a human right adult navicular bone r...

Se plantea el problema del patrimonio paleontológico en Andalucía, y una de las posibles soluciones razonables, desde las perspectivas técnica y profesional.

En la Hoya de Guadix (provincia de Granada) las rocas guardan el espectacular testimonio de una historia geológica que nos permite conocer la evolución de un río durante, al menos, los últi-mos 5 millones de años (Fig. 1). El protagonista de esta historia geológica continental es el río paleo-Fardes, cuyo legado en el tiempo es el actual río Fardes...

The presence of remains of a giant tortoise in the lower Pleistocene site of Fonelas P-1 (Guadix Basin, Betic Ranges; Granada, southeastern Spain) is reported and analyzed herein for the first time. This finding represents the youngest evidence of a large tortoise in continental Europe, dating the age of extinction of this successful lineage as sev...

[ES] Se presentan los resultados de la excavación de los niveles inferiores del Pleistoceno Superior (E4 y E5) de la cueva de los Torrejones de Tamajón (Guadalajara). [EN] The results of the excavation of Upper Pleistocene lower leves (E4 and E5) in Torrejones Cave (Tamajón, Guadalajara, Spain) Peer reviewed

Available at: http://www.paleodiversitas.org/

The central sector of the Guadix Basin (Betic Cordillera, S. Spain) hosts some of the most significant Pleistocene large-mammal sites in Europe. The basin infill is divided into six genetic units, the three lower with marine sediments and the remainder mainly continental. As the environmental characterization of the sediments is crucial to understa...

Fonelas P-1 paleontological site (ca. 2,0 million years BP) is turning out to be a key for the knowledge of the continental life during the late Upper Pliocene in south-western Europe. The diverse association of large mammals and the abundance of fossil remains, both cranial and postcranial, do not owe to purely geological processes. The different...

Los hiénidos, miembros de la familia Hyaenidae, tienen una distribución cronológica en el registro fósil español relativamente constante a lo largo del Plioceno y Pleistoceno, aunque su distribución geográfica es discreta hasta el inicio del Pleistoceno medio. Distintos géneros y especies han formado parte de los ecosistemas ibéricos durante los úl...

Detailed map of the work area (see Figure 1) of Fonelas Project for 2001–2007 (built up areas in black: Fonelas, Benalúa, Belerda and Pedro Martínez). Position of both sites known before the project was undertaken (Huélago and La Solana del Zamborino), the position of the new large mammal sites located in the Fonelas Project and the location of the...

Demagnetization vector endpoint diagrams of representative samples of the FP-1 section. Inset plots represent remanent magnetization (black dots) and susceptibility (white dots) measured at room temperature after each demagnetization step. (1.42 MB TIF)

Vertebrates identified at FP-1 and other new sites at the GB (from oldest, on the left side, to youngest, on the right). *, marks the sites with hyaenid activity. (1.00 MB DOC)

Equal area stereonet projection of paleomagnetic directions of the FP-1 section and fisher statistics of the mean normal and reverse directions. Red stars represent the expected Geocentric Axial Dipole directions at the site. (0.39 MB TIF)

Summary of the biostratigraphic information of FP-1 with data of other Spanish and European sites. The Spanish, European and Caucasian sites are situated in the most parsimonious positions as a function of the research carried out into each. The integral analysis of the information permits us also: to integrate into one the dispersal events traditi...

This paper reports a new species of dog (Canis accitanus nov. sp.) from the Fonelas P-1 site (dated close to the Plio-Pleistocene boundary) in Granada, Spain. This new taxon shows cranial features more similar to coyote-like dogs (C. lepophagus, C. priscolatrans, C. arnensis or C. latrans) than to wolf-like dogs (C. etruscus, C. mosbachensis or C....

Se presentan los avances técnicos, científicos y sociales (cultura científica) realizados por el equipo del Proyecto Fonelas en la investigación de la Formación Guadix, desde los inicios del citado proyecto, en 2001, hasta el año 2007. Destacan, por su importancia científica: el descubrimiento e investigación integral del yacimiento Fonelas P-1; la...

A detailed cyclostratigraphic and paleomagnetic study was carried out on the cyclically bedded succession of Pliocene and Pleistocene floodplain deposits FP-1(Guadix Basin, Spain). Sedimentary cycles are recognised at least on two different scales. The hierarchy is interpreted to represent periodic alluvial fan expansion over the floodplain area. T...

This chapter reports the scientific and technical advances made by the Proyecto Fonelas team between 2001 and 2007 with respect to the Formación Guadix, and describes the efforts to disseminate this information (scientific culture). Outstanding among the achievements discussed are the discovery of the Fonelas P-1 site and the work performed there,...

This work describes fossils - a maxilla fragment containing M2 and M3, and a neurocranium - from the Fonelas P-1 site (zone MNQ18) belonging to the oldest known representative of the genus Capra .T he anatomical characteristics represented not only assign the original animal to this genus; they also suggest it belonged to a novel species Capra baet...

This paper reports a new species of ancient badger –Meles iberica n. sp. – discovered at the Fonelas P-1 Plio-Pleistocene site (Cuenca de Guadix, Granada, Spain). The anatomical features of its fossils, which identify it as a new species of Meles, include: the great robustness and small size of the specimens found, orbits nearly closed by well-deve...

New pollen data from hyena coprolites from central Spain are presented. The fossil faecal material has been recovered from two karstic systems in different localities, Villacastín and Los Torrejones, which are both around 1000 m a.s.l. The combined findings of bone remains and coprolites in both locations suggest the following chronology: late Midd...

In this work we develop an up-to-date stratigraphical scheme of a determinate zone within the western sector of the Guadix Basin (Betic Cordillera, South of Spain), where most of the main large-mammal sites are concentrated. The stratigraphical architecture is highly influenced in this sector by the tectonic evolution of the basin. The boundary bet...

The Fonelas P-1 large-mammal site is located stratigraphically in the youngest unit (Late Pliocene–Pleistocene) of the endorheic fill of the Guadix Basin (Betic Cordillera). At the site location this unit is represented by fluvial sediments of the basin's axial drainage system. The general succession of the site consists of stacked fining-upward cy...

This paper presents pollen analysis of badger coprolites from Cueva de los Torrejones, central Spain. Eleven of fourteen coprolite specimens showed good pollen preservation, acceptable pollen concentration, and diversity of both arboreal and herbaceous taxa, together with a number of non-pollen palynomorph types, especially fungal spores. Radiocarb...

We present the outstandings technical, scientific and cultural aspects developped from 2001 about the Fonelas Project investigations. These investigations have its central idea in the integral knowledge of the large mammals site at Fonelas P-1 (Pliocene-Pleistocene boundary, Guadix-Baza Basin, Granada), and also of different new sites founded in th...

The Fonelas P-1 large mammals site is located stratigraphically in the most modern unit (Late Pliocene-Pleistocene) of the endorrheic filling of the Guadix-Baza Basin. At the site location this unit is represented by fluvial sediments of the axial drainage system of the Guadix sub-basin. The general succession of the site consists of stacking of fi...

The Fonelas P-1 large mammals site is located stratigraphically in the most modern unit (Late Pliocene-Pleistocene) of the endorrheic filling of the Guadix-Baza Basin. At the site location this unit is represented by fluvial sediments of the axial drainage system of the Guadix sub-basin. The general succession of the site consists of stacking of fi...

Ecomorphological and biogeochemical (trace element, and carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen isotope ratios) analyses have been used for determining the dietary niches and habitat preferences of large mammals from lower Pleistocene deposits at Venta Micena (Guadix-Baza Basin, Spain). The combination of these two approaches takes advantage of the strengths...

Ecomorphological and biogeochemical (trace element, and carbon, nitrogen, and oxygen isotope ratios) analyses have been used for determining the dietary niches and habitat preferences of large mammals from lower Pleistocene deposits at Venta Micena (Guadix-Baza Basin, Spain). The combination of these two approaches takes advantage of the strengths...

The chronology of the first arrival ofHomo in Europe is a rather controversial issue, with most scholars claiming until very recently that there were no permanent human settlements before the middle Pleistocene. However, new findings at Atapuerca, Dmanisi and Orce, as well as the re-evaluation of the evidence from Java, Israel and China indicate a...

The paleontological collections stored in the Museo Geominero mainly come from the geological field works carried out by the Instituto Geológico y Minero during more than one century. Among these collections, we emphasize the fossil vertebrates, with a representative sample of 252 Spanish Hipparion remains coming from 14 different deposits ranging...

A new Villafranchian locality, Fonelas P-1, from Guadix-Baza Basin (Granada, southeastern Spain) is presented. The paleontological systematic excavation carried out during July 2001 has provided nearly 500 fossil remains that were mapped, which show an excellent state of preservation and belong to 20 genera of large mammals, as well as several foss...

The processes of fossilization have usually been perceived by paleontologists as destruc- tive ones, leading to consecutive (and in most cases irretrievable) losses of paleobiological infor- mation. However, recent developments of conceptual issues and methodological approaches have revealed that the decrease in paleobiological information runs par...

An ecomorphological analysis of the skeletal remains of large canids, Canis (Xenocyon) falconeri and Canis etruscus (Mammalia, Carnivora, Canidae), preserved in an assemblage of large mammals from the lower Pleistocene site at Venta Micena (Guadix–Baza Basin, Orce, Granada, southeastern Spain) is reported. Mean body mass of adult individuals was es...

Two new sites with hominid, palaeolithic and faunal remains from the late Middle and early Upper Pleistocene in Murcia, S.E. Spain, are presented in the light of recent ongoing excavations and multidisciplinary research. The article outlines the origins and development of the research project with reference to aspects of field strategy and methodol...

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Among the Palaeozoic invertebrate and ichnofossil collection of the Geominero Museum there have been recorded 135 type and 501 figured specimens. All of them come from Spanish localities, except for 28 from Morocco and the Western Sahara. A computer based maintenance system has been dedicated to these specimens, which will provide an easy retrieval...

Carnivore fossil remains from two Villafranquian sites in Ciudad Real province (Spain) are described. Most specimens correspond to the postcranial skeleton, and although the sample is small and fragmentary, the following taxa have been identified: the canid Nyctereutes megamastoides, the felid Acinonyx pardinensis and the hyaenids Chasmaporthetes l...

Le bilan critique de 20 annees de recherches effectuees sur les formations plio-pleistocenes de la region d'Orce (Andalousie, Espagne) permet d'avoir une idee precise des acquis et du potentiel local. Le secteur d'Orce-Venta Micena, partie orientale de la depression de Guadix-Baza, a fait l'objet de nombreuses etudes geologiques qui ont etabli la s...

We report quantitative paleoecologic data on the large mammal assemblage preserved in lower Pleistocene deposits at Venta Micena (Orce, Granada, southeastern Spain). Taphonomic studies show that bones were collected mainly by hyaenids, which transported and deposited them near shallow dens. Differential fragmentation of major long bones was produce...

This paper is the first part of the monograph on the Middle Pleistocene karstic deposit at Villacastin (Segovia). The micromammal association is described. Two micromammals are described for the first time in the Spanish Pleistocene (Crocidura suaveolens and Oryctolagus cuniculus cf. grenalensis), and the population of Myotis myotis and Oryctalagus...

Se describen las características sedimentológicas, tafonómicas y paleoecológicas de los yacimientos de Venta Micena y Cueva Victoria, así como la acción antrópica sobre huesos (huesos rotos por percusión y cutmarks) e industrias líticas de Venta Micena. También se describen los nuevos restos humanos encontrados en Venta Micena y Cueva Victoria dura...

The western sector of the Guadix Basin (Betic Cordillera, Spain) hosts a great amount of important macromammal fossil sites. In order to provide these sites with a precise chronostratigraphic frame, a detailed litho-magnetostratigraphic study has been carried out, and an actualized correlation scheme is presented. Magnetostratigraphic data, obtaine...

The comparative systematic study of those species of large mammals preserved in the Lower Pleistocene sites at Venta Micena and Fuente Nueva-3 (Orce, Guadix-Baza Basin, Southeastern Spain) has revealed a faunal assemblage which is clearly different to those of typical European Villafranchian and Galerian faunas.

A detailed cyclostratigraphic and paleomagnetic study was carried out on the cyclically bedded succession of Pliocene and Pleistocene floodplain deposits FP-1(Guadix Basin, Spain). Sedimentary cycles are recognised at least on two different scales. The hierarchy is interpreted to represent periodic alluvial fan expansion over the floodplain area. T...

This work reports fossils of two species of hyaenids (Pachycrocuta brevirostris and Hyaena brunnea) from the late Upper Pliocene Fonelas P-1 site (MNQ18 zone). To date the typical hyaenids reported for the late Upper Pliocene ecosystems of continental Europe have been Chasmaporthetes lunensis and Pachycrocuta perrieri. The reported association of h...

We present the outstandings technical, scientific and cultural aspects developped from 2001 about the Fonelas Project investigations. These investigations have its central idea in the integral knowledge of the large mammals site at Fonelas P-1 (Pliocene-Pleistocene boun- dary, Guadix-Baza Basin, Granada), and also of different new sites founded in...

This work describes the first fossils representing the genus Mitilanotherium discovered in Western Europe. The large size and the patent gracefulness of these Granadine giraffes suggest they belong to a different species to that recorded for Eastern Europe, Mitilanotherium martinii. This hypothesis may soon be tested using new materials recently fo...

The paleontological collections stored in the Museo Geominero mainly come from the geological field works carried out by the Instituto Geológico y Minero during more than one century. Among these collections, we emphasize the fossil vertebrates, with a representative sample of 252 Spanish Hipparion remains coming from 14 different deposits ranging...