“Unveiling the Tiny: The Discovery of the World’s Smallest Sauropod Footprint in Xizang”

This composite image, courtesy of Xing Lida, an associate professor at the China University of Geosciences Beijing, illustrates a fossilized dinosaur footprint discovered in Qamdo, located in the southwest of China’s Xizang Autonomous Region (L) along with its 3D representation.

On Friday, Chinese researchers announced the finding of two dinosaur track locations in southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region, featuring one that holds the smallest fossilized sauropod footprint known globally, dating back over 166 million years. (Xinhua)

BEIJING, Jan. 10 (Xinhua) — On Friday, researchers in China disclosed the discovery of two sites with dinosaur tracks in the southwestern Xizang Autonomous Region, which includes a location that possesses the tiniest fossilized sauropod footprint in the world, dating more than 166 million years back.

The tracking sites are situated in a village within Qamdo City. In July 2023, a group of geologists stumbled upon a series of reptilian-like tracks on both sides of a road in the village. They worked jointly with paleontologists for a comprehensive analysis, identifying tracks attributed to sauropod and theropod dinosaurs from the Middle Jurassic era.

The results of their research were published online in the Historical Biology journal at the end of December.

The study indicates that one location features a sequence of three consecutive large theropod tracks, each measuring approximately 42 centimeters in length. These tracks can be categorized as Eubrontes and are relatively rare in the Jurassic dinosaur tracking records of Xizang. Their presence signifies that medium-sized carnivorous dinosaurs, potentially reaching lengths of 6 meters, once inhabited the area.

The second site primarily includes small, solitary sauropod tracks measuring from 8.8 to 15.5 centimeters, which were probably left by more than six dinosaurs with body lengths up to 2 meters.

“Such minute sauropod tracks are exceptionally uncommon,” remarked Xing Lida, the lead author and an associate professor at the China University of Geosciences Beijing. He pointed out that earlier studies had reported sauropod tracks of 12.2 centimeters in the Republic of Korea and tracks of 11.5 to 13 centimeters in Inner Mongolia, northern China.

“This finding in Xizang has broadened our knowledge of sauropod track dimensions in the Qamdo region,” Xing commented. “It implies that smaller sauropods may have existed here, or that these magnificent beings practiced age separation while being well-developed at birth.”

The size disparity between adult and juvenile sauropods is notable. Mature sauropods could grow to lengths of 20 to 30 meters, while hatchlings would have measured less than half a meter when first hatching from their eggs. Such differences contributed to varied movement patterns and dietary habits among different age groups, leading to several sauropod species establishing separate communities based on age, explained Xing.

Even though the area is remote and positioned at a high altitude, scientists have frequently visited since the 1970s. They have recorded a substantial number of Early Jurassic and Middle Jurassic dinosaur fossils. In 2011, Xing’s team discovered Jurassic sauropod tracks near the No. 214 state highway in Qamdo.

Researchers assert that in regions like Qamdo, marine sedimentation progressively lessened during the Early Jurassic period, ultimately converting into an inland basin throughout the Middle Jurassic period. The deepest Jurassic stratum is over 4,800 meters, enabling numerous fossil discoveries.

These findings underscore the vast possibilities for dinosaur studies in Xizang, Xing stated, remarking that ongoing dinosaur research will continue to make contributions to scientific inquiries and public education in the area. ■

This illustration, supplied by Xing Lida, an associate professor at the China University of Geosciences Beijing, portrays sauropod dinosaurs based on the fossilized tracks discovered in Qamdo, located in southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region.

On Friday, Chinese researchers disclosed the discovery of two dinosaur track sites in southwest China’s Xizang Autonomous Region, including one that contains the world’s smallest fossilized sauropod footprint, which is older than 166 million years. (Xinhua)