Researchers found around 200 Jurassic-period footprints in five “extensive” trackways making up a “dinosaur highway” at Dewars Farm Quarry in Oxfordshire.
The footprints, which researchers believe could be around 166 million years old, 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 to expose the quarry floor.
Working closely with Dewars Farm and Duns Tew Quarry Manager, Mark Stanway, and his staff, the Universities of Oxford and Birmingham were called in and co-led a team of more than 100 people on a week-long excavation in June 2024.
The footprints were uncovered after quarry worker Gary Johnson felt “unusual bumps” as he was stripping the clay back (Image: Oxford University Museum of Natural History) Researchers have said that 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 they said was made by the carnivorous theropod dinosaur, the Megalosaurus, which had distinctive, large, three-toed feet with claws and was the first dinosaur to ever be scientifically named and described.
One area of the site showed the carnivore and herbivore tracks crossing over, raising questions about whether and how the two were interacting.
Professor Kirsty Edgar, Professor of Micropalaeontology at the University of Birmingham, said: “These footprints offer an extraordinary window into the lives of dinosaurs, revealing details about their movements, interactions, and the tropical environment they inhabited.”
During the excavation, 20,000 images were created of the footprints with researchers building detailed 3D models of the site using aerial drone photography to document the footprints in “unprecedented detail” for future research.
Researchers believe a Cetiosaurus and a Megalosaurus made the tracks (Image: Mark Witton) The new trackways connect to discoveries made in the same area in 1997, where previous limestone quarrying revealed more than 40 sets of footprints, with some trackways reaching up to 180 m in length.
Professor Richard Butler, Professor of Palaeobiology at the University of Birmingham, added: “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.”
The excavation will be broadcast on BBC Two’s Digging for Britain on 8 January and will be featured in a new public exhibition titled “Breaking Ground” at the Oxford University Museum of Natural History (OUMNH).
Dr Duncan Murdock, Earth Scientist at OUMNH, said: “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.”