J.J. Moratalla's research while affiliated with Instituto Geológico y Minero de España and other places

... Body size disparity is strikingly broad, encompassing a range that spans dimensions of the biological realms, namely, from bacteria and pollen (microns; Vullo et a., 2012) to bipedal dinosaurs (longer than 5m; Herrera-Castillo et al. 2022, Ortega et al. 2010). The size range within the same taxa is also large (Figs. 5 and 6), not only because there are fossils of the same species from different ontogenetic stages (e.g., adult and juvenile salamanders; Fig. 5), but also because there can be differently sized species of the same taxon (e.g., gastropods, teleosteans, dinosaurs). ...

... They found that linear measurements could not differentiate between trackmakers, but that geometric morphometrics could do so and the authors advocate its increased usage in studying tracks. However, in a different study, geometric morphometrics was unable to discern theropod from ornithopod tracks (Costa-Perez et al., 2019). ...

... The aim of this paper is to describe and discuss the El Barrancazo outcrop, its vertebrate tracks, and to provide an interpretation of these ndings in the context of the other Late Triassic localities at Cortes de Pallás. This includes the rst tracksite described in Reolid et al (2017), which is referred to in this paper as the El Ral tracksite, and a second tracksite described in Navarro and Moratalla (2018), known as the Los Gallegos tracksite (Fig. 1). By studying the El Barrancazo outcrop and its vertebrate tracks in the context of these other tracksites, it is possible to gain a better understanding of the animals and environments that existed in this region during the Late Triassic. ...

... Multiple coprolites also occur in an Iguanodon bonebed at Nehden in Germany (Norman, 1987). Other notable coprofaunas from Early Cretaceous nonmarine strata include the Maceió and São Sebastião formations of Brazil (Souto, 2008;Souto & Schwanke, 2010), the Wealden Group of England (Buckland, 1829;Goldring et al., 2005;Martill & Naish, 2001), the Escucha Formation (Alcalá et al., 2012;Vajda et al., 2016) and La Huérguina Formation (Las Hoyas Konservat-Lagerstätte: Barrios-de Pedro et al., 2018;Barrios-de Pedro, Chin et al., 2020;Barrios-de Pedro, Osuna et al., 2020) of Spain, the Angeac-Charente bonebed of France (Rozada et al., 2021), the Jehol Lagerstätte of China (Burnham, 2008;Pan et al., 2011Pan et al., , 2013 and the Tsagan-Tsab Formation of Mongolia (Rummy et al., 2021). Other nonmarine Early Cretaceous coprolites are present in the United States, Mexico, and Denmark (Hunt & Lucas, 2016). ...

... Finally, the Cenomanian of Pego Longo (Carenque) tracksite is the only Late Cretaceous dinosaur tracksite known in Portugal. This tracksite consists of a 127 meters long bipedal dinosaur trackway (Santos et al., 1991. In the Algarve Basin, the fossil record of dinosaurs is scarce. ...

... It is well known because of the exceptionally preserved fossil bodies whose diversity ranges from algae to aquatic and terrestrial vertebrates [28]. Ichnology is represented by invertebrate and vertebrate traces [22,29] as well as abundant coprolites [30]. Las Hoyas formed part of a regional inland wetland in the context of a carbonatic lentic ecosystem with a seasonal subtropical climate [21,31]. ...

... Analogous educational activities or gamification/game-based learning experiences on Earth Sciences were proposed all over the world, from Ecuador [42] to Iran [43], from China [38] to USA [7,25] or Europe [19,23,26,28,30,32,34,39,45,46,[48][49][50][51][52][53]. During the COVID-10 pandemic, several laboratories could not take place; therefore, natural laboratories for lectures in the fields are necessary and very useful for structural geology and stratigraphic studies. ...

... Palaeontology is certainly one of the most easily suitable geoscience to be divulged to the general public and can provide the starting point for initiatives aimed at the protection and divulgation of the geological heritage of a determinate territory also through the geotourism. The latter is an innovative approach to classic natural tourism aiming at the safeguarding and promotion of natural heritage, with geosciences as its main elements, in association with knowledge of a given environment as a whole, including biosphere and environmental education, as well as aspects related to a sustainable increase in the local economy (Hose 2008;Del Lama et al. 2015;Berrocal-Casero et al. 2018). This touristic approach mainly aims to promote a territory history, culture, and traditions, contributing to the well-being of local communities. ...

... The polarity concept is not discredited by the occurrence of intermediate-gauge trackways, as ambiguously suggested by Castanera et al. (2016) in considering the wide and narrow sauropod trackway differentiation 'obsolete'. Polarities between wideand narrow-gauge trackways are not made 'obsolete' by intermediate gauge forms, especially when the authors voicing such concerns also hold that 'heteropody, trackway gauge and trackway configuration may play considerable roles in sauropod ichnotaxonomy' (Castanera et al. 2016, p. 134), and tetrapod ichnotaxonomy in general. ...

... En principi, aquesta prospecció es va centrar en el que coneixem com la zona paleontològica d'Isona i Conca Dellà, però en anys poste riors s'ha estès als municipis veïns d'Abella de la Conca, Gavet de la Conca i Tremp. El resultat d'aquestes campanyes de prospecció ha estat la localització de prop de 60 nous jaciments d'ous, icnites, restes vegetals i, sobretot, restes òssies de dinosaures i altres vertebrats (Gaete i Bravo, 2002;Vila et al., 2006), que demostren de nou que aquesta àrea pirinenca esdevé una de les regions més importants d'Europa amb restes dels darrers dinosaures (Vila et al., 2006, Riera et al., 2009, Galobart et al., 2011 conviure; icnites de diferents tipus d'organismes; nius, ous individuals i fragments de closques d'ou de dinosaures i cocodrils i, finalment, diferents tipus de restes vegetals. A continuació oferim una petita descripció dels jaciments més importants que se situen a la Fig. 2. ...