Tiny Dinosaur Footprints Unearthed in China
Five fossilized dinosaur footprints from the Cretaceous period, believed to be among the smallest known footprints of their kind in the world, have been discovered in northwest China’s Gansu province. Xinhua reports the find.
Staff from the Linxia Geopark Dinosaur Museum stumbled upon the footprints earlier this month after heavy rainfall exposed them on an eroded rock surface.
Each footprint measures approximately one to three centimeters in length.
Scientists note that such footprints have previously been found in the Sichuan Basin, Shandong Province, and the Republic of Korea, suggesting a wider distribution during the Cretaceous period.
This new discovery in Linxia provides valuable insights into the biostratigraphy, geological ages, and dinosaur diversity in these regions.
Experts emphasize the scientific significance of the find, shedding light on the decline of dinosaurs and their evolutionary relationship to birds.
Since the late 1990s, over 2,000 dinosaur footprints have been unearthed in Linxia’s Yunjing County, part of the geopark.
The new footprints suggest that the creatures that left them moved at a leisurely pace.
The discovery also reveals that these small dinosaurs were active near water, as numerous footprints of waterfowl were found alongside their tracks.
These footprints offer valuable insights into the habits, behavior, and ecological relationships of these prehistoric creatures.