Book 5, Question 9
Stomp Stomp! Why Do We Find Dinosaur Footprints?
A dinosaur footprint can form when a dinosaur walks over soft mud or sand. If that print dries, gets covered, and slowly turns to rock, it can last for millions of years. Trails of footprints can show how big an animal was and which way it went.
From the book
Page from A Million Whys Book 5
More fun facts
- Dinosaurs left footprints when they walked on soft mud or sand, just like you do on a muddy trail.
- Over time the footprints filled with sand or small pebbles and hardened into rock.
- Dinosaurs ruled Earth for about 150 million years, so billions of footprints were made, and a few were preserved.
- Tracks on a beach in Wales show that long-necked dinosaurs walked there over 200 million years ago.
- Scientists scan footprints with 3D imaging so they can study them closely.
- In Denali National Park, the most common tracks were made by theropods and duck-billed hadrosaurs.
Sources: National Park Service, BBC, National Geographic
Questions kids ask
Can footprints tell us things bones cannot?
Yes. A group of tracks can show where dinosaurs walked and whether they gathered together.