An international team of paleontologists has discovered a 5.7-cm-long stegosaur footprint in Xinjiang province, China.
The newly-discovered stegosaur footprint was left around 110 million years ago (Early Cretaceous epoch).
It belongs to the ichnogenus Deltapodus and co-occurs with the tracks of larger individuals.
Found in the Tugulu Group, China’s Xinjiang province, it is only 15% as long as the type of Deltapodus curriei from the same locality.
“This footprint was made by an herbivorous, armored dinosaur known broadly as a stegosaur — the family of dinosaurs that includes the famed Stegosaurus,” said Dr. Anthony Romilio, a paleontologist in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Queensland.
“Like Stegosaurus, this little dinosaur probably had spikes on its tail and bony plates along its back as an adult.”
“With a footprint of less than 6 cm, this is the smallest stegosaur footprint known in the world.”
“It’s in strong contrast with other stegosaur prints found at the Chinese track site which measured up to 30 cm, and prints found in places like Broome in Western Australia where they can be up to 80 cm.”
World’s Smallest Stegosaur Footprint Found | Paleontology | Sci-News.com
The newly-discovered stegosaur footprint was left around 110 million years ago (Early Cretaceous epoch).
It belongs to the ichnogenus Deltapodus and co-occurs with the tracks of larger individuals.
Found in the Tugulu Group, China’s Xinjiang province, it is only 15% as long as the type of Deltapodus curriei from the same locality.
“This footprint was made by an herbivorous, armored dinosaur known broadly as a stegosaur — the family of dinosaurs that includes the famed Stegosaurus,” said Dr. Anthony Romilio, a paleontologist in the School of Biological Sciences at the University of Queensland.
“Like Stegosaurus, this little dinosaur probably had spikes on its tail and bony plates along its back as an adult.”
“With a footprint of less than 6 cm, this is the smallest stegosaur footprint known in the world.”
“It’s in strong contrast with other stegosaur prints found at the Chinese track site which measured up to 30 cm, and prints found in places like Broome in Western Australia where they can be up to 80 cm.”
World’s Smallest Stegosaur Footprint Found | Paleontology | Sci-News.com