The aim of this paper is to provide a summary of structural or surface modifications of vertebrate bone remains in continental palaeoenvironments that may have repercussions on their chemical composition. Both before and after burial, a different set of physical, chemical and biological agencies may produce modifications of the bone morphological structure and/or bone chemical composition. Several of these morphological modifications are diagnostic of particular agents, which otherwise may not be noticed or identified in a fossil association. In order to understand diagenesis, those events that occurred before final burial have to be considered, as they may strongly modify the bone morphological structure and influence post–burial changes.

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This is the first published database of a Bathynellacea Chappuis, 1915 collection of slices and DNA extracts. It includes all data of bathynellaceans (Crustacea: Syncarida) collected in the last 48 years (1968 to 2016) on the Iberian Peninsula and Balearic Islands, studied since 1984. It also includes specimens studied across many countries of Europe (Portugal, Romania, France, Italy, Slovenia, Bulgaria, and England), as well as some specimens obtained from samples of North America (Montana, Washington, Alaska and Texas), South America (Brazil, Chile and Argentina), Asia (China, Thailand, Vietnam, Mongolia and India), Africa (Morocco and Chad) and Australia (New South Wales –NSW- and Queensland). The samples come from groundwater (caves, springs, wells and hyporrheic habitat associated with rivers) obtained from both, sampling campaigns and occasional sampling efforts.The data set includes 3399 records (2657 slices and 742 DNA extracts) corresponding to three families (Parabathynellidae Noodt, 1965, Leptobathynellidae Noodt, 1965 and Bathynellidae Grobben, 1905) of the order Bathynellacea; the existence of three families is accepted, but this is a controversial issue and here is not the appropriate context to address this problem; 52 genera and 92 species formally described, in addition to 30 taxa under study and, thus, still unpublished. This represents more than half of all the genera known worldwide (80) and almost one third of the species currently known in the world (329, which increases every year).This dataset contains especially relevant collection that includes holotypes and type series of 43 new species of Bathynellacea (33 from the Parabathynellidae and ten from the Bathynellidae) described by Ana I. Camacho (AIC hereinafter); eleven of these are the type species for new genera described from all around the world, ten belonging to the Parabathynellidae and one from the Bathynellidae. As previously mentioned, these new species come from all continents, although 26 of them are from the Iberian Peninsula.The most important feature of this collection is that it has been created and reviewed by a specialist of the group (AIC), and each specimen, regardless of its shape (either permanent slices or DNA extracts), includes taxonomic, geographical and authorship information. The specialist has been involved in all stages of the process, from field sampling to the digitization of the results we are now presenting, and has worked in close collaboration with the curators responsible for the different collections involved in this project.

La Colección de Meteoritos del Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales de Madrid consta de más de 240 especímenes que corresponden a unos 160 meteoritos diferentes. La colección fue iniciada por el Marqués de Socorro, tomando como base algunos ejemplares antiguos que se encontraban en el Museo junto con intercambios y compras que realizó. Esta colección, según datos de Fernández Navarro (1923) RESUMENEl objetivo de este estudio es recopilar los datos históricos conocidos más relevantes sobre meteoritos españoles incorporando las novedades que está generando el importante meteorito de Villalbeto (Palencia, 4 de enero de 2004), incluyendo análisis originales en el microscopio electrónico ambiental de barrido (ESEM) realizados en el Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN), nuevos testimonios humanos y nuevas observaciones de campo, con algunas fotografías inéditas del meteorito. El superbó-lido del 4 de enero de 2004 fue un fenómeno geológico de importancia trascendental, estuvo acompañado de sonidos, una estela persistente de 30 minutos y más de 32 fragmentos documentados. La masa entrante se pudo determinar independientemente por su luminosidad, por detección sísmica, por detección infrasónica y por radioisótopos, coincidiendo todos los métodos en unos 750 kilogramos y menos de un metro de diámetro. Entró en la atmósfera terrestre a 61.000 kilómetros por hora y estalló a unos 28 kilómetros de altura esparciendo fragmentos en un área elíptica de unos 20 x 6 kilómetros en el norte de Palencia.Palabras clave: Meteoritos, España, Villalbeto, Bolido, Historia. ABSTRACTAims of this work are to collect relevant historical data on Spanish meteorites together with the recent data provided by novelties which are being generated from the important meteorite fall of Villalbeto (Palencia at 2004, January, 4th.). Here are also included new observations performed by ESEM (Environmental Scanning Electron Microscopy) in the Spanish Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales of Madrid (MNCN), new private information and new field observations together with original pictures of the Villalbeto fragments. The impressive fireball of January 4, 2004 was an important geological phenomenon escorted by audible booms, colour, a persistent path of 30 minutes and a production of more than 32 known fragments. The initial entrance magnitude mass was independently determined by photometric, seismic, infrasound and radioisotopes data matching on 750 kg, size less than 1 m of diameter, and 60 000 km/h in the entrance time. A massive fragmentation occurred at a height of 28 km produced a meteorite strewn field of 20x6 km in the northern of Palencia.