Paleontology breakthrough as scientists discover ‘world’s smallest dinosaur footprints’ | World | News
Scientists have unearthed the world’s smallest known sauropod dinosaur footprints in the eastern Xizang autonomous region of China.
Estimated to date back to the Jurassic Period, approximately 170 million years ago, these diminutive tracks were found in a village near Chamdo city and announced by the research team on Friday.
The footprints, ranging from 8.8 to 15.5 centimetres in length, were identified as belonging to at least six dinosaurs of the Parabrontopodus ichnogenus.
Associate Professor Xing Lida from the China University of Geosciences said such small sauropod footprints are very rare.
“South Korea has recorded 12.2 cm footprints, and the Inner Mongolia autonomous region in China has seen footprints of 11.5 to 13 cm, both in Cretaceous strata, which are tens of millions of years younger than the Jurassic Period,” Xing explained.
The estimated body length of the dinosaurs that left these tracks is between 2 and 3 meters, suggesting they were juvenile sauropods.
This discovery shows the potential existence of small sauropods in the region and their behaviour, hinting at age segregation within sauropod species.
Sauropods, renowned for their massive size, often grew to lengths of 20 to 30 meters as adults.
However, hatchlings started at less than half a metre long. Xing added how this size disparity influenced their behaviour and diet, often resulting in age-based segregation within sauropod groups.
The findings, published in the international paleontology journal Historical Biology in late December by Xing and Chen Xinyu, a senior engineer at the China Geological Survey, offer critical insights into sauropod life during the Jurassic Period.
In addition to the sauropod tracks, researchers discovered three large footprints measuring about 42 centimeters.
These tracks, classified under the ichnogenus Eubrontes, suggest the presence of medium-sized theropod dinosaurs, potentially reaching body lengths of six meters.
“While Eubrontes footprints are common in Mesozoic Era records in China, their appearance in Jurassic strata in Xizang is relatively rare,” Xing remarked.
The discoveries add to the growing understanding of the Qinghai-Xizang Plateau’s prehistoric landscape.
During the Early Jurassic Period, the area was influenced by marine sedimentation from the ancient Tethys Ocean, transitioning to inland basins by the Middle Jurassic Period.
“This new fossil evidence reinforces the hypothesis that the eastern part of southwestern China was once part of the ancient Tethys Ocean,” Xing said.
