Fernando Abdala | Paleontólogo

Teaching Experience

Master and PhD evaluation

  • March 2013. Higher Degree examination Committee Member for the Master Science Thesis of William Desmond Krummel. Project Title: Ichnology and sedimentology of large tetrapod burrows in the Early Triassic Katberg Formation, south-eastern main Karoo Basin, South Africa. University of Cape Town.

  • February 2012. Higher Degree examination Committee Member for the Master Science Thesis of Alessandra Daniele da Silva Boos. Project Title: Descrição osteológica de um exemplar de Endothiodon (Synapsida, Dicynodontia) provenente da Serra do Cadeado (Formação Rio do Rasto, Permiano Superior) e suas implicações bioestratigráficas e paleobiogeográficas. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.

  • January 2012. Higher-Degree examination Committee Member for the Doctoral Thesis of Mirriam Tawane. Project title: Dental size and frequency of anomalies in the teeth of a small-bodied population of Mid-Late Holocene Micronesians, Palau, Micronesia. University of the Witwatersrand.

  • December 2011. Higher Degree examination Committee Member for the Master Science Thesis of Patricia Rodrigues Braunn. Project Title: Hipoplasia de esmalte en Toxodon Owen 1837 (Mammalia, Notoungulata) do Pleistoceno do Estado do Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.

  • September 2011. Higher-Degree examination Committee Member for the Doctoral Thesis of Pablo Gusmão Rodrigues. Project title: Reconstituições digitais do encéfalo e da orelha interna de Brasilitherium riograndensis Bonaparte et al., 2003, e considerações sobre a evolução neurológica e sensorial na transição entre cinodontes não-mamalianos e mamíferos. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.

  • September 2010. Higher-Degree examination Committee Member for the Doctoral Thesis of Nadia Sonia Domnanovich. Project title: Revision de los dicinodontes kannemeyeridos (Amniota, Therapsida) de Argentina. Relaciones filogeneticas e implicancias paleobiogeograficas. Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina.

  • July 2010. External evaluator member for the Magister Science Thesis of Dewald du Plessis Project title: Examination of non-mammalian cynodont cranial endocasts. University of the Free State, Bloemfontein.

  • April 2010. Higher-Degree examination Committee Member for the Doctoral Thesis of Teo Veiga de Oliveira. Project title: Postura e locomoção em cinodontes do Triássico Sul-Americano: um estudo de caso baseado em Trucidocynodon riograndensis Oliveira, Soares & Schultz, 2010 (Triássico Superior, Formação Santa Maria, Bacia do Paraná; Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil). Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.

  • January 2010. External evaluator member for the Magister Science Thesis of Elize Butler. Project title: The postcranial skeleton of the Early Triassic non-mammalian cynodont Galesaurus planiceps: implications for biology and life style. University of the Free State, Bloemfontein.

  • August 2009. Higher-Degree examination Committee Member for the Doctoral Thesis of Sergio Furtado Cabreira. Project title: Anátomo-histologia ósteo-dentária básica do tritheledontidae Riograndia guaibensis Bonaparte et al., 2001 (Therapsida, Eucynodontia): implicações no estudo da emergência e integração dos caracteres mamalianos. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil.

  • May 2008. Higher-Degree examination Committee Member for the Master Thesis of Felipe Montefeltro. Project title: Inter-relações filogenéticas dos rincossauros (Diapsida, Archosauromorpha). Faculdade de Filosofia, Ciências e Letras de Ribeirão Preto, Universidade de Sao Paulo.

  • November 1999. Higher-Degree examination Committee Member for the Doctoral Thesis of Jose Eduardo Figueiredo Dornelles. Project title: Uma modelagem morfológica, funcional e mecânico-vetorial, para a reconstituição da musculatura adutora e abdutora de Exaeretodon sp. (Synapsida, Cynodontia, Traversodontidae) da Formação Santa Maria (Meso e Neocarniano) do Rio Grande do Sul, Brasil. Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul.

  • October 1998. Higher-Degree examination Committee Member for the Master Thesis of Marilia da Silva Aguiar. Project title Patologias no aparelho mastigatório em Didelphis marsupialis (Marsupialia, Didelphimorphia, Didelphidae) do sul do Brasil. Pontificia Universidade Católica de Rio Grande do Sul.

Student and postdoctoral supervision

  • 2013. Supervisor of Honours student Marc van den Brandt, University of Witwatersrand. Project title: Cranial Morphology and variation in the Late Permian cynodont Cynosuchus suppostus from the Karoo basin, South Africa.

  • 2013. Co-supervisor of Honours student Safiyyah Iqbal, University of Witwatersrand. Project title: Comparative study of the forelimb of the Early Triasssic cynodont Thrinaxodon liorhinus.

  • 2013. Supervisor of MSc student Helke Mocke,University of Witwatersrand. Project title: The postcranium of the carnivorous cynodont Chiniquodon from the Upper Omingonde Formation of Namibia (Middle Triassic), and a comparison with South American representatives of the genus.

  • 2013. Co-supervisor of PhD. student Luke Norton, University of the Witwatersrand. Project title: Tooth replacement patterns in Eutheriodontia from South Africa.

  • 2013. Co-supervisor of MSc. student Ashley Kruger, University of the Witwatersrand. Project title: Ontogeny and cranial morphology of the basal carnivorous dinocephalian, Anteosaurus magnificus from the Tapinocephalus Assemblage Zone of the South African Karoo

  • 2013 to date. Advisor of Asistant Researcher Dr Leandro Gaetano,  Research  Career, Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Cientificas y Tecnicas (CONICET), Argentina.

  • 2012 to 2013. Advisor of postdoctoral fellowship bestowed by CONICET (Argentina) to Dr Leandro Gaetano, Universidad de Buenos Aires, Argentina.

  • 2010-2012. Supervisor of MSc student Blair McPhee Bernard Price Institute (Palaeontology), University of the Witwatersrand. Project title: The anatomy and phylogenetic relationships of Antetonitrus ingenipes (Dinosauria, Sauropodiformes): implications for the origins of Sauropoda. Completed.

  • 2008-2012. Co-supervisor of MSc. student Luke Norton, Bernard Price Institute (Palaeontology), University of the Witwatersrand. Project title: Taxonomic revision of the Rubidgeid gorgonpsians (Gorgonopsia; Synapsida) using modern morphometric and phylogenetic techniques. Completed.

  • 2008-to date. Co-supervisor of PhD student Saniye Atayman Bernard Price Institute (Palaeontology), University of the Witwatersrand. Project title: Taxonomic revision of tapincephalid dinocephalians – the key to understanding Middle Permian tetrapod biodiversity.

  • 2006. Supervisor of Honours student Helke Mocke, School of Geosciences, University of Witwatersrand. Project title: Allotherian-like teeth in the Early Triassic of South Africa. One scientific paper published after the project.

  • March 2001-February 2002. Supervisor of student Annie Hsiou, Pontifícia Universidad Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil. Project title: The Triassic collection of Rio Grande do Sul at the Museu de Ciências e Tecnología-PUCRS. Bolsa de iniciação científica (BIC), FAPERGS. One sicentific paper published after the project.

Lecturing activities

  • 2012-to date. Coordinator of Honours Course Palaeontology, University of the Witwatersrand.

  • 2003 to date. Lecturer to Honours students, Palaeontology. University of the Witwatersrand.
    Lectures given as Power Point presentations with a practical component in:

    a. Phylogenetics
    b. Mesozoic mammals
    c. Megaherbivores of the Caenozoic
    d. Late Therapsids: Gorgonospia, Therocephalia and Cynodontia

  • August 2009, April 2010, August 2011. Lecturer of the postgraduate course: Evolucão dos euteriodontes permianos e triassicos da bacia do Karoo, África do Sul in the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, Porto Alegre, Brazil for Geosciences Masters/Doctoral students in Palaeontology.

  • Teacher of the postgraduate course. Evolution of South American Mesozoic Therapsids. Instituto de Biociencias de la Pontifícia Universidade Católica do Rio Grande do Sul, for Biosciences Masters/Doctoral students in 1998, (Aug. 10– 14), and in the Universidade Federal do Rio Grande do Sul, for Geosciences Masters/Doctoral students in Palaeontology, in 2000, (Nov. 28 - Dec. 2).

  • 1996-1997. Teacher of Vertebrate and Paleontology at Tertiary Level in Natural Sciences at the Escuela General de Comercio General San Martín in Monteros, Tucumán.

  • August 1995. Teacher of the postgraduate Course: Anatomical elements and their use in saurian systematics. Collegiate course at the Faculty of Natural Sciences - Universidad Nacional de Tucumán.

  • 1991-2000. Teacher, Auxiliary Member (Graduate) Vertebrates at the Faculty of Natural Sciences - Universidad Nacional de Tucumán.

  • 1986-1988. Teacher, Auxiliary Member (Student) Vertebrate Palaeozoology at the Faculty of Natural Sciences - Universidad Nacional de Tucumán.