The fossilised footprints were found along a nature trail at Phu Phrabat National Park in Udon Thani province, as per Bangkok Post. A tourist’s photograph has helped experts confirm the discovery of six dinosaur footprints believed to be around 120 million years old in northeastern Thailand.
Authorities have temporarily restricted access to the site to protect the fossils while experts examine the area. Thailand’s Department of Mineral Resources confirmed the discovery on October 20, identifying the impressions as footprints left by a theropod, a group of two-legged dinosaurs that included carnivorous species.
Authorities are now considering measures to establish a protected zone around the site to prevent damage from visitors and natural erosion. The Department of Mineral Resources has proposed working with the Department of National Parks, Wildlife and Plant Conservation and the Fine Arts Department to safeguard the discovery. Geologists are examining the area, while officials have prohibited unauthorised access and urged the public not to dig, disturb or move any evidence. Measures to prevent water erosion are also being considered. The site could eventually be developed into an educational attraction for scientific research and tourism, subject to further assessments. Such trace fossils form when an animal leaves an impression in soft ground or sediment, which is later covered by additional layers and gradually hardens into rock.
Each footprint measures approximately 29 cm in length and 26 cm in width. Based on their dimensions, researchers estimate that the dinosaur stood about 1.42 metres tall at the hip and measured around 6.3 metres in length. The proposed protection measures would be implemented under Thailand’s Fossil Protection Act 2008.
The discovery also highlights how dinosaur footprints can survive for millions of years, according to the Bangkok Post .
Its estimated size is comparable to that of Siamotyrannus isanensis, an extinct theropod previously discovered in Thailand from the same geological period.
