Rosa Rubicondior: Refuting Creationism - Walking With Dinosaurs - 166 Million Years Before 'Creation Week'

Excavated footprint.

Credit: Oxford University Museum of Natural History.

Major new footprint discoveries on Britain’s ‘dinosaur highway’ | University of Oxford

Scientists from Oxford and Birmingham Universities have uncovered hundreds of tracks of different sorts of dinosaur in a quarry in North Oxfordshire, and, unlike those in the Paluxy Riverbed, Texas, USA, no-one has carved human footprints in amongst them to fool tourists.

Amongst the tracks are five distinct trackways, the longest of which is 150 meters. Sadly for creationists, we can be sure there will not be any human footprints in the same rock formation because these tracks were made around 166 million years ago when the earliest mammals hadn't diversified even into simians, let alone the African apes.

Tell me about the dinosaurs whose tracks were found at Dewar’s Farm Quarry, Oxfordshire, UK, please. The dinosaur tracks found at Dewar's Farm Quarry in Oxfordshire belong to several species that lived during the Middle Jurassic period, approximately 166 million years ago. These tracks provide important insights into the types of dinosaurs that inhabited the region and their behaviours.

Sauropods (e.g., Cetiosaurus)

Description: Cetiosaurus was a large, long-necked herbivorous dinosaur, often referred to as a "whale lizard" due to its massive size.
Size: Estimated to be around 15–18 meters (50–60 feet) long and weighing several tons.
Tracks: The sauropod tracks are large, rounded impressions, reflecting their massive, column-like legs.
Behaviour: The tracks suggest these dinosaurs moved in herds across the mudflats, possibly in search of food or water. Their weight created deep impressions in the soft sediment.

Theropods (e.g., Megalosaurus)

Description: Megalosaurus was a bipedal carnivorous dinosaur and one of the first dinosaurs ever scientifically described (in the early 19th century).
Size: Estimated to be about 6–9 meters (20–30 feet) long, with a powerful build and sharp teeth for hunting.
Tracks: The theropod tracks are three-toed impressions, reflecting their bird-like feet and bipedal movement.
Behaviour: These tracks may indicate hunting or scavenging behaviour. The spacing of the footprints can provide clues about their speed and gait.

Ornithopods (Possible Tracks)

Description: Ornithopods were herbivorous, bipedal or quadrupedal dinosaurs.
Tracks: Smaller three-toed tracks that could belong to early ornithopods have also been found at similar sites. However, their identification is less certain compared to sauropods and theropods.

Ecological Context

The region during the Middle Jurassic was a tropical lagoon with mudflats, shallow waters, and abundant vegetation. This environment supported a diverse ecosystem, including these dinosaurs.
The tracks were preserved when the dinosaurs walked across soft mud that was quickly covered by sediments, preventing erosion and fossilizing the footprints.
The discovery of these tracks at Dewar's Farm Quarry highlights the diversity of dinosaur life in the UK during the Jurassic period and offers a rare glimpse into their behaviours and environment.

How the tracks were uncovered is the subject of an Oxford University news release, and a BBC documentary:

Major new footprint discoveries on Britain’s ‘dinosaur highway’
In a stunning find, researchers from the Universities of Oxford and Birmingham have uncovered a huge expanse of quarry floor filled with hundreds of different dinosaur footprints, creating multiple enormous trackways. Dating back to the Middle Jurassic Period (around 166 million years ago), the trackways form part of a huge ‘dinosaur highway’ and include footprints from the 9 metre ferocious predator Megalosaurus, and herbivorous dinosaurs up to twice that size.
See also our 'behind the scenes' at the dig site feature here.

The dig, carried out at Dewars Farm Quarry in Oxfordshire, uncovered five extensive trackways with evidence of more in the surrounding area. The longest continuous trackway measured more than 150 metres in length. Four of the trackways were made by gigantic, long-necked, herbivorous dinosaurs called sauropods, most likely to be Cetiosaurus, an up to 18-metre-long cousin of the well-known Diplodocus. The fifth trackway was made by the carnivorous theropod dinosaur, Megalosaurus which had distinctive, large, three-toed feet with claws. One area of the site shows the carnivore and herbivore tracks crossing over, raising questions about whether and how the two were interacting.

Megalosaurus was the first dinosaur worldwide to be scientifically named and described in 1824, and kick-started the last 200 years of dinosaur science.

Dr Emma Nicholls, Vertebrate Palaeontologist at OUMNH explained: 'Scientists have known about and been studying Megalosaurus for longer than any other dinosaur on Earth, and yet these recent discoveries prove there is still new evidence of these animals out there, waiting to be found.'

The footprints were buried under mud but came to light when quarry worker Gary Johnson felt 'unusual bumps' as he was stripping the clay back with his vehicle, in order to expose the quarry floor. At this point, the experts were called in. Working closely with Quarry Manager Mark Stanway and his staff, a team of more than 100 people, the Universities of Oxford and Birmingham co-led a team of more than 100 people on a week-long excavation in June 2024. Together, they painstakingly uncovered around 200 footprints and built detailed 3D models of the site using aerial drone photography – documenting the footprints in unprecedented detail for future research.

These footprints offer an extraordinary window into the lives of dinosaurs, revealing details about their movements, interactions, and the tropical environment they inhabited.

Professor Kirsty Edgar
Professor of Micropalaeontology
University of Birmingham.
Mark Stanway and his team at Smiths Bletchington provided an enormous amount of support, from the initial discovery through to the full excavation. They were invaluable in providing both their extensive expertise in the local geology, and operating specialist equipment such as excavators and rock saws.
The new trackways connect to discoveries made in the area in 1997, where previous limestone quarrying revealed more than 40 sets of footprints, with some trackways reaching up to 180m in length. At the time, the site provided major new information on the types of dinosaurs present in the UK during the Middle Jurassic Period. The site was recognised as one of the most scientifically important dinosaur track sites in the world and subsequently designated a Site of Special Scientific Interest. However, the original site is largely no longer accessible and, since the findings predated the use of digital cameras and drones, there is limited photographic evidence.

The new trackways add to the significance of the area, and even though the discoveries are separated by just thirty years, modern techniques and technology mean the prints can be recorded much more comprehensively than ever before.

There is much more that we can learn from this site, which is an important part of our national Earth heritage. Our 3D models will allow researchers to continue to study and make accessible this fascinating piece of our past for generations to come.

Professor Richard Butler
Professor of Palaeobiology, University of Birmingham.

During the new excavation, more than 20,000 images were created of the prints. These will provide a wealth of material for further study and education and could yield valuable insights into how these dinosaurs walked, including speeds, how large they were, and if and how they interacted.

The preservation is so detailed that we can see how the mud was deformed as the dinosaur’s feet squelched in and out. Along with other fossils like burrows, shells and plants we can bring to life the muddy lagoon environment the dinosaurs walked through.

Dr Duncan Murdock
Earth Scientist Oxford University Museum of Natural History.

The dig leadership team, Kirsty Edgar, Richard Butler, Duncan Murdock and Emma Nicholls, with Digging for Britain presenter, Alice Roberts (second right).

Credit: University of Birmingham.

Discovery to be celebrated on BBC’s Digging for Britain and in public exhibition

The BBC’s Digging for Britain team filmed the work as part of a new series due to be broadcast next week. Presented by Professor Alice Roberts, who is also the University of Birmingham’s Professor of Public Engagement in Science, the programme will be available on iPlayer from 7 January, and broadcast on BBC2 on 8 January 2025.

The dig will also feature in the exhibition Breaking Ground at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History, which tells the story of major developments in our understanding of the history of life and Earth. Visitors will be able to view the original Megalosaurus fossils used in the first description of a dinosaur, see photographs and video footage from the dig site, and learn about the latest techniques used by palaeontologists to study dinosaurs.

Just another of those events that took place in the very long period of Earth history that happened before creationists imagine Earth was created, and another example of evidence that shows the authors of Genesis didn't know what they were talking about.

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