A massive carnivorous dinosaur most likely reclined or crouched in Yorkshire 166 million years ago, sinking its feet deep into the ground. A record-breaking footprint was recently discovered in the United Kingdom’s “Dinosaur Coast” by the huge beast.
The Jurassic footprint, about a meter (3.3 feet) long, is the largest of its kind discovered in Yorkshire.
Record-Setting Dinosaur Footprint
Hundreds of dinosaur footprints and other fossils have been discovered along the Yorkshire shore over the years. This discovery, however, was uncovered by local archaeologist Marie Woods while walking along the coast in April 2021.
No one believed Marie Woods when she made a spectacular discovery while exploring the Yorkshire coast in April 2021. Nothing could have prepared Woods for such an astonishing find, even having seen lesser prints with her friends in the past.
Marie was startled by her discovery and, in disbelief, contacted local fossil experts. None, however, could shed any light on the unusual trail she had discovered.
That’s when Marie decided to get in touch with Dr. Dean Lomax, a well-known paleontologist from The University of Manchester and author of Dinosaurs of the British Isles.
One Of Six Fossil Prints
Only six comparable prints have been found in the area, with the earliest discovered in 1934. This tridactyl (three-toed) print is the largest of any found.
The previous one was unearthed in 2006 and is now on exhibit at Scarborough’s Rotunda Museum. The earlier print’s discoverer, John Hudson, is the principal author of the new research that explains this massive find.
“This important discovery adds further evidence that meat-eating giants once roamed this area during the Jurassic. The type of footprint, combined with its age, suggests that it was made by a ferocious Megalosaurus-like dinosaur, with a possible hip height between 2.5 and 3 meters.” stated local geologist Hudson.
Megalosaurus, the world’s first official dinosaur, was unveiled in 1824. During the Middle Jurassic period, this massive carnivore roamed Southern England, leaving behind bones that were unearthed in Oxfordshire.
Although fossils from various areas have been linked to this mysterious creature, the only known Megalosaurus remnants are those discovered near its native home.
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