Evidence of early Jurassic dinosaur tracks found in SW China

A discovery of chicken paw-shaped footprint fossils, found last year in a forest park in Chongqing, has been confirmed as dinosaur footprints left 190 million years ago.

In March 2019, a rock climber stumbled across the footprints at Geleshan National Forest Park, 16 kilometers from downtown Chongqing. After an investigation, scientists from the Beijing-based China University of Geosciences, together with researchers from local geological departments, identified the dinosaur tracks as Kayentapus, which were probably made by large and medium-sized theropod (meaning beast feet) dinosaurs dating back to the early Jurassic period.

According to scientists, the dinosaur tracks were found to be 46 theropod footprints in total, indicating that the trackmakers were trotting.

The findings were presented in an online article published by the British Journal of Historical Biology in late May.

The discovery has added to the records of Kayentapus in China and Asia, and it can help people understand the distribution and evolution of dinosaurs in the early Jurassic period, according to co-author Dai Hui.