On Wednesday, scientists unveiled the discovery of fossilized dinosaur footprints on a rock slab that had been on display for 20 years at Biloela State High School in Queensland, Australia. The slab contains one of the strongest concentrations of dinosaur footprints ever observed in Australia, with 66 three-toed footprints from 47 individual dinosaurs, according to Phys.org.
The footprints belong to Anomoepus scambus, a small, bipedal herbivore dating from the Early Jurassic period, approximately 200 million years ago. This ichnospecies was first found in the US. "This is one of the highest concentrations of dinosaur footprints ever found in Australia," said paleontologist Anthony Romilio from the University of Queensland, according to 20 Minutes.
The slab was gifted to the school by coal miners who discovered it in 2002 while excavating in the region. Noticing the unusual footprints, the miners decided to present it to the local educational institution in the small town of Biloela. Since then, the rock had been displayed in the school's hall, going largely unnoticed for two decades.
"It is incredible to think that such a rich piece of history could have been resting in a schoolyard all this time," Romilio said. He noted that some teachers thought the slab was a replica rather than the real thing.
The discovery came to light when scientists in the region initiated a call for reports of possible dinosaur fossils, prompting teachers at Biloela State High School to remember the existence of the slab. Upon examining it, Romilio realized its value. "As a palaeontologist, I knew I had found a very important specimen," he said, according to New Scientist.
Due to its size and weight, moving the slab for detailed study was challenging. "The slab was so heavy that it took several strong people to lift it into a position where it could be studied," noted New Scientist. Romilio had to employ various methods to analyze the footprints fully. "The full extent of the find was revealed after Romilio cast a 3D silicon model, took photographs, and applied filters to remove the colors," as reported by New Scientist.
Analyzing the size of the footprints, researchers estimate that the dinosaurs had hip heights between 20 and 76 centimeters and were walking at speeds between 2 and 6 kilometers per hour. The environment at the time was likely a silty surface under a shallow layer of water, providing ideal conditions for preserving footprints.
Romilio pointed out that such discoveries often go unnoticed. "Significant fossils like this can sit unnoticed for years, even in plain sight," he remarked. "The vast majority of dinosaur fossils, they're not found by paleontologists. They're actually found by people on the ground," Romilio said.
Romilio and a team of researchers published their findings in the peer-reviewed journal Historical Biology.
The article was written with the assistance of a news analysis system.