The Middle Jurassic is the second of the three series or epochs of the Jurassic period. This division of the geological time scale spans from 174 to 161 million years. In this period, dinosaurs predominated, and some of them began to reach large sizes, such as the cetiosaur sauropods and the omeisaurs.
At the end of the Middle Jurassic, the ancestors of tyrannosaurids and maniraptores appeared. Among the latter are the ancestors of birds. The discovery of dinosaur footprints that has been made dates back to this period. at Dewars Farm quarry, Oxfordshire (England).
The footprints were buried under the mud, but came to light when a quarry worker felt “unusual blows” while removing the clay with his vehicle to expose the floor of the quarry. At that point the experts were called in.
A path of more than 200 footprints
Last June, a group of more than 100 researchers from the Universities of Oxford and Birmingham worked on a week-long excavation. What they found, they explainis the largest dinosaur site in the UKwith more than 200 footprints that show the paths traveled by sauropods. This is a “highway” from 166 million years ago.
Researchers used drones and more than 20,000 digital images to create 3D modelswhich allowed a detailed analysis of the movements of the dinosaurs and the environment of the lagoon.
They have identified gigantic long-necked herbivores, it is believed that they belonged to the Cetiosaurusa dinosaur that measured almost 18 meters in length. Another set belonged to Megalosaurusa ferocious 30-foot predator that left a distinctive three-claw print. This was the world’s first dinosaur scientifically named and described in 1824, kick-starting the last 200 years of dinosaur science.
“Megalosaurus has been known and studied by scientists longer than any other dinosaur on Earth, and yet these recent discoveries show that There is still new evidence of these animals out therewaiting to be found,” says Emma Nicholls, vertebrate paleontologist at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History (OUMNH).
“These footprints offer an extraordinary window into the lives of dinosaurs.”
One area of the site shows that the tracks of carnivores and herbivores intersected, raising questions about whether and how the two species interacted. “These footprints offer an extraordinary window into the lives of dinosaursrevealing details about their movements, interactions and the tropical environment in which they lived,” explains Professor of Micropaleontology at the University of Birmingham Kirsty Edgar.
The more than 20,000 images created during the excavation will provide a wealth of material for study and education. According to experts from the Birmingham-Oxford team, they could provide valuable information about how these dinosaurs walkedincluding speeds and their size.
“We can learn a lot more from this site. Our 3D models will allow researchers to continue studying and make this fascinating piece of our past accessible to future generations,” says Richard Butler, Professor of Palaeobiology at the University of Birmingham.
They add to the findings of 1997
“Together with other fossils such as burrows, shells and plants we can bring to life the muddy lagoon environment where the dinosaurs walked,” says Duncan Murdock, a scientist at the Oxford Museum of Natural History. It will be in this museum where the new findings will be exhibited.
“Together with other fossils we can bring to life the environment of the muddy lagoon through which the dinosaurs walked.”
The new traces They add to the discoveries made in the area in 1997when the previous exploitation of a limestone quarry revealed more than 40 sets of footprints, some of which reached 180 meters in length. At the time, the site provided important new information about the types of dinosaurs present in the UK during the Middle Jurassic and was designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest.
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