London: A team of researchers in the UK have found the footprints of at least six different dinosaur species – the last dinosaurs to walk on British soil 110 million years ago.
The discovery of dinosaur footprints by curator and scientist Hastings Museum and Art Gallery of C is the last dinosaur record in the UK.
Footprints have been found on cliffs and by the beach in Folkestone, Kent, where stormy conditions affect cliffs and coastal waters, constantly revealing new fossils.
“This is the first time dinosaur footprints have been found in a layer known as the ‘Folkestone Formation’ which is quite an unusual find as these dinosaurs were the last to roam this country before it went extinct,” said paleontology professor David. Martell.
“They’re sailing near where the White Cliffs of Dover are now – next time you’re on the ferry and you see those beautiful Cliffs, imagine!”
Footprints of various dinosaurs, showing the relatively large diversity of dinosaurs in southern England at the end of the Early Cretaceous period, 110 million years ago.
According to a research paper published in the Proceedings of the Geologists Association, fossilized footprints formed from sediment filled dinosaur footprints on the ground, preserving them.
They are believed to be ankylosaurs, armored dinosaurs that looked roughly resembling living tanks; theropods, which were three-toed meat-eating dinosaurs such as Tyrannosaurus rex; and ornithopods, plant-eating dinosaurs with “hips” due to their somewhat bird-like pelvic structure.
Most of the finds are isolated footprints, but one find is made up of six footprints – making a “track”, which is more than successive footprints of the same animal.
The largest footprint found – 80 cm wide and 65 cm long – was identified as belonging to an iguanodon-like dinosaur. Iguanodonts were also plant eaters, growing up to 10 meters long and walking on two or four legs.
“Finding such a group of species in one place is a wonderful thing. These dinosaurs may have benefited from tidal exposure on the coastal coast, and may have foraged for food or utilized well-defined migratory routes.”
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