Geometric morphometric methods applied to theropod tracks from the Huérteles Formation (Berriasian, Spain) are here shown to be invaluable for drawing comparisons between theropod tracks with different preservation modes (true tracks, shallow undertracks and natural casts) or differing in the preservation of anatomical features (e.g. digital pads). Principal components analysis and thin‐plate spline methods can quantitatively distinguish between the broad groups of tracks in a sample and establish the main differences between them. These methods offer a promising approach for estimating ichnodiversity, achieved by evaluating just the morphology of the tracks independent of other factors such as size. The theropod tracks of the Huérteles Formation can be classified into two broad groups: minute‐to‐medium‐sized gracile theropod tracks (Kalohipus bretunensis) and medium‐to‐large‐sized robust theropod tracks (Iberosauripus). The presence of a third group of more gracile medium‐to‐large‐sized theropod tracks (Megalosauripus) cannot be proven with certainty on the basis of the current data. These results indicate that the theropod ichnodiversity of the Huérteles Formation is probably lower than that estimated by means of conventional methods alone (e.g. qualitative description of the tracks) and that many of the described theropod morphotypes may represent extramorphological or ontogenetic variations of other morphotypes.
Eating habits of Panthera pardus are well known. When there are caves in its territory, prey accumulates inside them. This helps to prevent its kill from being stolen by other predators like hyenas. Although the leopard is an accumulator of bones in caves, few studies have been conducted on existing lairs. There are, however, examples of fossil vertebrate sites whose main collecting agent is the leopard. During the Late Pleistocene, the leopard was a common carnivore in European faunal associations. Here we present a new locality of Quaternary mammals with a scarce human presence, the cave of Los Rincones (province of Zaragoza, Spain); we show the leopard to be the main accumulator of the bones in the cave, while there are no interactions between humans and leopards. For this purpose, a taphonomic analysis is performed on different bone-layers of the cave.
a b s t r a c tThis study analyses the fossil record of leopards in the Iberian Peninsula. According to the systematic and morphometric features of new remains, identified mainly in Late Pleistocene palaeontological and archaeological sites of the Mediterranean region, they can be attributed to Panthera pardus Linnaeus 1758. The findings include the most complete leopard skeleton from the Iberian Peninsula and one of the most complete in Europe, found in a chasm (Avenc de Joan Guit on) south of Valencia. The new citations and published data are used to establish the leopard's distribution in the Iberian Peninsula, showing its maximum development during the Late Pleistocene. Some references suggest that the species survived for longer here (Lateglacial-Early Holocene) than in other parts of Europe. Finally, the contexts of appearance and origin of leopard remains are described and the processes of interaction with prehistoric human groups are assessed.
The new Quaternary site of Los Rincones in the region of Moncayo (Zaragoza, northeast Spain) has provided a well-preserved mandible of Panthera pardus. This mandible shows morphological similarities with that of snow leopard, Panthera uncia. The resemblance between specimens described as P. pardus in the European Pleistocene and P. uncia raises the question of whether the morphological variability of P. uncia includes the specimens from the European Pleistocene or whether it is rather a case of convergence in which the European leopard acquired particular characters of the snow leopard, such as the flattened snout, the short dental diastema and the elongation of the carnassial, through an adaptation process to a mountain environment. In addition, the Moncayo mandible led to the revision of the P. pardus material from the Iberian Peninsula. Though this region is one of the most densively inhabited by P. pardus in Europe, it has been poorly studied in the past. This shows that the Cantabrian region in the north of the Iberian Peninsula might have been the last refuge for this species prior to its complete disappearance from Europe.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.