Alberto Valenciano Vaquero – The Conversation

Skeletal reconstruction of the Langebaanweg sabertooth, with highlighted elements to indicate the bones examined in this study. Adapted from Mauricio Antón (2013)

December 22, 2022

Sabretooth cats hunted on South Africa’s coast 5 million years ago: this old one was in pain

Caitlin Bianca Rabe, University of Cape Town and Alberto Valenciano Vaquero, Universidad de Zaragoza

A closer look at these fossil bones revealed more than the suggestion of a previously undescribed species - it pointed to the individual animal having suffered with osteoarthritis.

Fossil of the skull and. mandibles of the new species. Alberto Valenciano

June 17, 2021

Fossil find introduces a new ancestor to the jackal family tree

Alberto Valenciano Vaquero, Universidad de Zaragoza; Jorge Morales Romero, Museo Nacional de Ciencias Naturales (MNCN-CSIC), and Romala Govender, University of Cape Town

Jackals appeared and established themselves in Africa in at least the last five million years. These animals have evolved and adapted to the changing environment, allowing them to survive.

What South Africa’s West Coast might have looked like 5 million years ago. In the foreground, a giant wolverine feeds on a pig while chasing away a primitive hyena. Maggie Newman, Geological Society of South Africa and the University of the Witwatersrand

June 21, 2020

Gigantic wolverines, otters the size of wolves: fossils offer fresh insights into the past

Alberto Valenciano Vaquero, University of Cape Town and Romala Govender, University of Cape Town

The teeth and limb bones we studied help to understand the role and lifestyle of these species in extinct ecosystems.

Contact Alberto for