The Institut Catala de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP) as a center of research and development, considered a leader in the creation and transfer of knowledge to society, declares itself as a Catalan institution , internationally oriented , committed to the environment , defending in the development of its activities and practice the values of freedom, pluralism, democracy, equality, solidarity and equity.

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The Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP) is a foundation created in November of 2006, with the Generalitat de Catalunya and the Universitat Autònoma of Barcelona as patrons, which constitutes a contrast from the Institut de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont, founded in 1969. Therefore, the new Institut is the intersection for uniting experience and warmly renewed tradition.
As a research center of reference, conservation and diffusion of the paleontology of vertebrates in Catalonia (Spain), the ICP aims to strongly promote research and the conservation of the paleontological patrimony at an international level and allow the efficient transfer of knowledge to society.

Dear all,

The Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont (ICP) is the heir of a long tradition in fossil vertebrate research in Catalonia, which was established and later consolidated by the notorious paleontologist Miquel Crusafont-Pairó from Sabadell.

At the ICP we are convinced that Paleontology, as a discipline halfway between Biology and Geology, should make fundamental contributions not only to the history of life, but also to evolutionary theory. This is why the research performed at the ICP clearly follows a paleobiological approach. In other words, for usit is not enough knowing how past living beings were and what are their kinship relationships with extant ones. We also aim to know how they lived, how they moved, what they ate, how they developed and reproduced, how they interacted with one another, what environment they inhabited and, ultimately, how past interactions between organisms and environment have shaped the ecosystems that we know today. It is precisely the access to deep time (or geological time, the one which is measured in millions and millions of years), by means of the study of fossil remains, what provides Paleobiology with a unique perspective of utmost importance for understanding why and how living beings have evolved in relation to the environment than surrounds them through Earth’s history.

For our research team, it is important to perform all the various steps of paleontological research, beginning with fieldwork (excavations and samplings), continuing with the study and analysis of fossil remains, and ending with the publication and dissemination of the results. In these regards, the basic task of description and taxonomic identification of the remains is still an essential aspect of our work. However, more and more, the study and analysis of the fossils is carried out using more sophisticated and computer-assisted techniques. Most noteworthy among them are virtual paleontology and three-dimensional visualization techniques, such as X-ray computed tomography, which enables the non-invasive study of the internal anatomy preserved by fossil remains. Also particuarly remarkable are the analytical techniques allowing for quantitative comparisons and analyses, such as 3D geometric morphometrics, phylogenetic reconstruction software, or numerical analyses of paleobiodiversity dynamics, just to mention a few examples.

The specialized technicians of the ICP, in turn, perform a fundamental step between fieldwork and research, consisting in the preparation and conservation of the fossil remains that constitute the paleontological collections of our Institute. These collections are continuously growing thanks to the excavations and samplings performed by our researchers. However, before being able to study a particular specimen, it is required that specialized technicians carry out a process of paleontological preparation (cleaning, consolidation and, if necessary, reintegration). The process of paleontological preparation not only enables the manipulation of fossils, but it also guarantees their proper conservation once deposited in the collections. This process if of utmost significnce, given that fossils are our main souce of data. In this regard, the ICP aims to become the reerence center in Catalonia with regard to the conservation of the paleontological heritage of vertebrates. This is why we offer our technical advice, in this and any other paleontological matter, to those institutions that request it.

But at the ICP we go one step further and, besides paleontological research, preparation and conservation, we further place particular importance to outreach activities to popularize paleontological heritage. In this regard, exhibiting the fossils it’s not enough, it is required to disseminate to the general public our research results, so as to make understandable the stories that hide in all these petrified bones. Transmitting paleontological knowledge to society, especially based on the finds and research results of our investigators, is for us a heartwarming moral obligation. In the words of the late North-American paleontologist Stephen Jay Gould: “Science is an integral part of culture. It’s not this foreign thing, done by an arcane priesthood. It’s one of the glories of the human intellectual tradition”. This is why at the ICP we have the vocation to make it available to those who are interested the conceptual and material tools that enable a cultural and ludic use of paleontological heritage. And we do so not only by means of the exhibition halls of the ICP Museum, located at the center of Sabadell, but also by collaborating in the estabishment and management of a network of local paleontological interpretation centers all over the country. Moreover, at these times of rampant antiscientific and creationist offensive, we feel a duty to help disseminating one of the most relevant scientific facts to comprehend the place of human being in Nature: organic evolution.

I do not want to finish without addressing those youngsters that, captivated by the secrets of evolution, perceive the grandeur in this view of life (the one alluded by Charles Darwin on the last sentence of the Origin of Species) and aim to devote yourselves to Paleontology. Becoming a researcher, from any discipline, is not an easy task... It requires a lot of study, tenacity, and sacrifice. And yet, if your fascination for fossils and your curiosity for evolution transcends any logical argument, if it is already too late for you, then I can do anything but to advise you to let yourselves be guided by your vocation. That you get trained in life and earth sciences, that you be ambitious and realistic at the same time, and that you try to put your talent at the service of paleontological research. You, as young people, are the future, not only of the ICP, but of the paleontological profession and of the whole scientific community. And only you, if you choose the correct questions, might hope to answer the multiple enigmas about the history of life that thus far remain unsettled.

With my warmest greetings,

David M. Alba
Director

The Institut Català de Paleontologia Miquel Crusafont carries out all the stages of paleontology from the finding, excavation and preparation of a fossil to its conservation, study and publication of results in scientific magazines and on through to its exposure in the mass media, exhibitions and museums.

What is a fossil?

Fossils are the remains of a living thing or its biological activity covered by sediments that with time have been compacted and hardened, making its conservation possible until the present time.

And what is paleontology?

Paleontology is the science of the study of living things of the past, and includes studying fossils.

Searching for fossils

The finding of a fossil can be done in two ways; by chance or after studying the geologic maps. If, for example, we search for dinosaur eggs or a skeleton of an Iguanodon, it is necessary to look in the layers of the era in which the dinosaurs lived; in this case the Mesozoic, between 251 and 65 million years ago. On the other hand, if what we want to find are fossils of anthropomorphous and others primates near the evolutionary line of man, it will be necessary to search in more recent sediments, of less than 15 million years from the Middle Miocene to the present time.

 

ICP paleontologists carry out the planning and prospecting of new lands suspected of yielding deposits of important fossils. Nevertheless, during spring and summer, they are usually dedicated to excavating in already well-known deposits, where new fossils are continuously found. Chance can also be an important factor in finding fossils. While hiking in the mountains, for example, some fortuitous finding can occur. For this reason, the ICP collaborates and receives the help of organizations like hiking centers.

Once they have located and defined a fossil, the paleontologists of the ICP evaluate its state of conservation. It is also important to write down the position and the location in which the fossil appears. This information can be valuable for later studies. A paleontological excavation is an irreversible process because later we will not be able to put fossils back into the sediment as they were.Writing down these data correctly helps to virtually and accurately reconstruct the original distribution of fossils in the deposit in the future.

For taking measurements, the paleontologists use grids, tape measures, computers and a tool known as 'station' that allows them to establish the coordinates of a point and to know its location. On the other hand, shovels, pneumatic hammers, escarpments and bistouries are also used for excavation.

Initial preparation of fossils

 

Once the paleontologists of the ICP have excavated part of the fossil, they make 'mummies' to protect it. 'Mummies' are housings made of polyurethane, and sometimes with plaster, which surround and protect the fossil.
In this way, when the time comes to transport it to the warehouses of the Institut, the material will not be damaged. The polyurethane, in addition, is a suitable material because it is very light and it does not add weight to the fossil, as is the case with plaster.

 

Transport

Once prepared, the fossil can now be manipulated by the researcher, who will be in charge of describing it and cataloging it.

In this way it will be possible to determine if the fossil belongs to a group, sort or described species, or if the fossil that has appeared is unknown, as in the case of Pierolapithecus catalaunicus, more commonly known as 'Pau'.

The study of the fossil can go on for weeks, months or years, depending on its complexity and classification. Starting with the existing bibliography, the researchers of the ICP also use the comparison with other skeletons or existing casts in the ICP or other centers.

This is known as 'material fossil of comparison'. If it is necessary, the researchers travel to other countries to learn more fully about the characteristics of the fossils. Later, drawings are usually made, although today they are also scanned in order to make use of virtual paleontology to reconstruct them with the aid of the computers and to work with its structure in 3D.

The results

Once the paleontologists have determined what fossil has been studied and what new contributions can be made for the improvement of knowledge in this discipline, they decide to publish the results in order to share them with the rest of the scientific community. In this way a scientific debate can be generated.

There are many specialized publications; Nature, Science, Brain Behaviour and Evolution, Journal of Human Evolution, American Journal of Physical Anthropology or Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology. These are just some of the most prestigious publications, but there are many more that are dedicated to specific areas.

The publication of an article in an important magazine is a long process since various verifications occur on the part of other experts who make critical revisions. Therefore, the time it takes the paleontologists to write the papers to the time they receive confirmation that it will be published can take at least six months.

The findings made by the researchers of the ICP have always been published in the best specialized magazines and have made remarkable contributions to the scientific debate.

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