Discovery and study of dinosaurs from Spain: The contribution of

AlbertF.deLapparent(1905–1975),thescion of afamily famousFrenchgeologists,wasdinosaurpalaeontologist.HeexploredmanyterritoriesinEurope,SaharanAfricaandAsiainsearch of fossils. The studies he undertook in Spain, which resulted in a dozen publicationsbetween 1955and1969,areanimportantpartofhisresearchondinosaurs.Lapparentetal.discovered about thirty dinosaur localities, mostly of Cretaceous age, in several Spanishprovinces, including Albacete, Castellon, Cuenca, Soria, Teruel and Valencia in the IberianRange, and Lleida (or Lerida) in the Pyrenean region. In 1958, Lapparent published thediscovery of dinosaur eggs in the Tremp Basin (Lleida), the first ones found in the IberianPeninsula. His1960workonthedinosaursofGalve(Teruel)wasthefirstmonographonthesubject published in Spain. In 1965, Lapparent was also the first to publish the discovery ofdinosaur footprints in Spain, more specifically in the province of Valencia.© 2012 Academie des sciences. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.