PALEOHERPETOLOGY IN THE MIGUEL LILLO INSTITUTE OF THE NATIONAL UNIVERSITY OF TUCUMÁN, ARGENTINA La paleoherpetologia en el Instituto Miguel Lillo de la Universidad Nacional de Tucuman, Argentina

MARTINELLI, AGUSTIN GUILLERMO; GONZALEZ, FRANCISCO RODRIGO; ABDALA, FERNANDO

Publicacion Electronica de la Asociacion Paleontologica Argentina

Asociacion Paleontologica Argentina

Año: 2022 vol. 22 p. 67 - 87

The Vertebrate Fossil Laboratory (LVF) of the Miguel Lillo Institute at the National University of Tucumán started in 1957 with the initial drive of Osvaldo Reig, who was its first Director and Curator of the Lillo Vertebrate Paleontology (PVL) collection. José Bonaparte, initially incorporated as technician, was the Director of the LVF from 1960 to 1978, after Reig. These researchers, together with Rodolfo Casamiquela (then at the La Plata Museum), dramatically altered the knowledge of argentinean Mesozoic amphibians and reptiles during the decades of 1960s and 1970s, representing the onset of a new chapter for the argentinean paleontology. During that time, these researchers described 34 new species and collected several fossil specimens from Mesozoic outcrops of different regions of Argentina. This activity enriched the PVL, resulting in a key collection for the study of Triassic paleoherpetology, a relevance that continues today. Jaime Powell took over the LVF after Bonaparte and conducted intensive research, mostly on sauropod dinosaurs from Argentina. Paleoherpetological research was complemented by an important team of technicians and artists who, in addition to fieldwork and fossil preparation, mounted fossil skeletons, made sculptures and life reconstructions of the Mesozoic fauna. Nowadays, the Lillo community has an important and dynamic group of researchers, mostly focused on the study of Cenozoic mammals.