The Footprint of Acrocathosaurus Dinosaurs has been discovered in Texas. After severe droughts cause water levels to drop, tracks left by a 15ft-tall Acrocanthosaurus are found in a dried-out river bed. Around seven tons of weight is attributed to the 15ft-tall dinosaur tracks.
Dinosaur experts discovered the footprints of Acrocanthosaurus species at Dinosaur Valley State Park in the state. Some of the prints are also thought to have been left by Sauroposeidon, an enormous dinosaur about 60 feet tall and weighing around 44 tons.
According to a social media post by the park, deep grooves in the muddy riverbed are evidence of the newly-found footprints. Dinosaur tracks are typically buried underwater and filled with sediment when it’s wet, so they’re less visible under normal weather conditions. Recent excavations and discoveries have largely uncovered tracks belonging to Acrocanthosaurus in the park.
Paluxy River shrank due to intense drought conditions, which have gripped Texas and other states in the southwest of the US, revealing the previously unseen footprints. A variety of dinosaur tracks are found in Dinosaur Valley State Park, mostly from sauropods and theropods, but this is the first appearance of such footprints.
As a result of their tracks being made in runny, deep mud, theropod tracks in the park often lack a distinctive three-toed pattern. Diplodocus and Brontosaurus, herbivorous dinosaurs with elephant-like feet, are sauropods, whereas Tyrannosaurus rex has clawed three-toed feet. An asteroid struck the Earth 66 million years ago, eventually wiping out both types of dinosaurs.
The Dallas region of Texas was once at the shore of a sea when the park’s tracks are believed to date back to the Cretaceous Era. A calcium carbonate deposit from crustacean shells at this shoreline made the mud at this shoreline the ideal consistency for preserving tracks.
Since the river conditions are extremely low right now, more tracks are visible than normal. It is a great time of year to visit the park if you want to see tracks and explore that aspect! According to the USDA, over 60% of Texas in August 2022 was affected by drought in at least two categories.
Heat waves have been severely affecting the state as well, leaving millions under excessive heat warnings. As a result of its dinosaur tracks display, Dinosaur Valley State Park is a National Natural Landmark.
HOW DID DINOSAURS GO EXTINCT?
Almost, 66 million years ago, dinosaurs ruled and dominated Earth, before suddenly going extinct. Mass extinctions of the Cretaceous-Tertiary period are known as the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction event. The huge reptile’s food chain was believed to have been destroyed by the changing climate for many years.
An iridium layer was discovered in the 1980s by paleontologists. There is a vast amount of this element in space, but it is extremely rare on Earth. Dinosaurs disappeared from the fossil record precisely when this was dated. At the tip of Mexico’s Yucatán Peninsula, scientists discovered the massive Chicxulub Crater that dates to this period.
Currently, scientists believe that both factors were caused by an enormous asteroid crashing on Earth. It is likely that the collision would have caused a massive shock wave and likely triggered seismic activity due to the predicted size and impact velocity. Dinosaurs would not have been able to survive if the fallout had created plumes of ash covering the entire planet.
There were other animals and plant species that were able to survive because their generation periods were shorter. The demise of the famous animals is also believed to have been caused by other theories. According to one theory, small mammals consumed dinosaur eggs, while another suggests angiosperms (flowering plants) killed dinosaurs.
Related Reading – The Mummy of Nodosaur Dinosaur
Source – Dailymail
