Bolivia's arid Carreras Pampa holds prehistoric treasures once overlooked by paleontologists. Thousands of dinosaur tracks are scattered across the dusty landscape, quiet impressions that now tell a vivid story of how ancient reptiles once moved, traveled and even swam across what is now South America. Researchers speculate that the area may have once served as a major travel route for dinosaurs, a dinosaur highway, so to speak.
In a new study published in PLOS OneResearchers from the California Geosciences Research Institute, in collaboration with other scientists, describe the amazing diversity of dinosaur tracks preserved along the Carreras Pampas Trail in Torotoro National Park. Across nine study areas, the team documented more than 16,000 individual tracks, making this the most extensive dinosaur track site ever discovered.
Read more: Could the remarkable footprints of prehistoric amphibians be older than dinosaurs?
Fossilized footprints provide insight into how dinosaurs moved
All tracks belong to three-toed animals theropodsa group of bipedal dinosaurs best known for including apex predators such as T. rex. But these Bolivian track masters came in all sizes. Some tracks are less than four inches long, while others are over a foot long, indicating that a sample of the mixture passed through the area.
Even more impressive than the sheer number of tracks is what they reveal about dinosaur behavior. Fossilized tracks record animals running, turning sharply, dragging their tails and, in some cases, moving through the water.
But how do scientists extract this level of detail from simple traces?
“Some information about movement is stored directly in the pathways, such as pathways that turn or have tail tracks associated with them,” says Jeremy A. McLarty, a professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Southwestern Adventist University. “Other motion reconstructions are based on comparisons with living animals, such as whether the dinosaur walked or ran, and how fast it moved.”
Bolivia has ideal conditions for preserving dinosaur tracks
Prehistoric traces and members of the research team at site Cp1 (Carreras Pampa).
(Image credit: Raul Esperante)
The Carreras Pampas site already attracted the attention of scientists in 2015, when rangers at Torotoro National Park brought it to the attention of researchers. Subsequent visits only increased their excitement.
“During our research, we were amazed by the abundance and variety of fossil evidence preserved at the site,” says McLarty. Researchers describe the area as “a stunning window into the region's past.” press release.
Bolivia is already famous for its dinosaur footprints, which contain tracks dating back almost 200 million years. Triassic through Cretaceous period. The country's unique combination of soft sediments, stable geology and rich dinosaur populations appears to have created the perfect conditions for the tracks to fossilize before they can become extinct.
Some researchers believe the region may once have been “part of the dinosaur highway through South America,” McLarty adds.
The authors also note that many other tracks remain unexplored in Carreras Pampa and other trails throughout Bolivia.
Reading dinosaur tracks around the world
Most of the Carreras Pampas trails have a clear orientation: from northwest to southeast. Ripple marks in the sediment indicate an ancient coastline, suggesting dinosaurs followed the edge of a long-lost body of water on their journey.
The site now holds world records for the number of individual dinosaur tracks, continuous tracks, tail tracks and swim tracks found in one location. The incredible abundance supports the idea that Carreras Pampa was a site of heavy dinosaur traffic, and the parallel orientation of some trails even raises the possibility that dinosaur groups traveled together.
The research team is already working on additional projects to uncover more details hidden in the tracks. They also hope to expand their investigations to other understudied regions of Bolivia.
McLarty believes the Bolivian trails could help lead to research elsewhere. Because so many tracks are preserved at one site, the site offers a rare opportunity to compare movement patterns and behavior across different age groups and settings. The data could help scientists interpret dinosaur tracks around the world for years to come.
Read more: A dinosaur highway following sauropod tracks provides insight into life in the Middle Jurassic
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