Abstract A simultaneous analysis of the fracture geometry and paleo-stress fields of the karstic Yunquera-Nieves massif i n southern Spain (Málaga Province) has been carried out with microtectonic stations. It reveals polyphased t ec -tonics linked to the structural position of this carbonate domain in the western Betic Cordillera. Among the tectonic regimes described in this domain appears a distensive stage with a radial trend probably of post-Tortonian to Quaternary age. Todate, it has seldom been described and is absent from geodynamic models though it seems to have had a regional importance. Furthermore, it played a major role for the acquisition of the hydrodynamic properties of t he aquifer and its karstogenesis. This stage opened all fractures and allowed t he development of karstic drains with NW-SE and N-S directions. Finally, the karstic network was shaped by more recent climatic and tectonic events.