A discovery in the field of palaeontology in Yorkshire in the United Kingdom is an attraction for scientists worldwide. An almost metre-long (3.3 feet) footprint of a dinosaur was found in Burniston Bay close to Scarborough, which is also referred to as the UK’s ‘dinosaur coast’.
The discovered footprint is said to be the largest of its kind in the region and will be displayed in the town’s Rotunda Museum.
The dinosaur footprint was found in April 2021 by a local researcher Marie Woods. She told a local news channel, “I couldn’t believe what I was looking at… I had to do a double-take. I have seen a few smaller prints when out with friends, but nothing like this. I can no longer say that archaeologists don’t do dinosaurs.”
She reached out to the regional expert in fossils but, none were familiar with what she was describing. She then got in touch with Dr Dean Lomax, a palaeontologist and honorary visiting scientist at the University of Manchester. “Marie contacted me whilst she was down on the beach with the fossil in front of her”, he said.
This is the largest theropod footprint EVER found in Yorkshire. Our paper describing this giant footprint is out today! 🦖
It was discovered by Rob Taylor and Marie Woods @MarieEWoods on the beach at Burniston Bay in 2021.
Artwork by James McKay. https://t.co/LH8TXjoMAr pic.twitter.com/qcBZAmi5aN
— Dr Dean Lomax (@Dean_R_Lomax) February 16, 2023
He and Woods authored a study published on Tuesday in the Proceedings of the Yorkshire Geological Society. Dr Dean Lomax is also the author of ‘Dinosaur of the British Isles’.
Both dino-finders are seen here, Marie @MarieEWoods and Rob Taylor, co-authors of our new study.
It will go on display @ScarbsMuseums, hopefully later this year. pic.twitter.com/RWZFumZfie
— Dr Dean Lomax (@Dean_R_Lomax) February 16, 2023
Scientists who examined the footprint Wood found stated that the dinosaur may be a carnivore, like a Megalosaurus. The shape and how the claws pressed into the ground suggest that the dinosaur was sitting or squatting before it stood up, according to Lomax.
“The most intriguing feature of our footprint is a long portion preserved at the back of the foot, which is an impression of what we call the metapodium. The presence might suggest our large meat eater was squatting down in the mud before standing up and walking away.”
A local geologist John Hudson stated that the discovery is evidence that carnivorous dinosaurs were present in this part of the world during the Jurassic period.
If the footprint belonged to a Megalosaurus that was among the largest predators at the time. It had a massive skull with sharp teeth and uneven teeth-hand on a body that reached between eight and nine meters (between 26 and 29 feet) in length, according to a report by CNN, an American news channel.
