Dinosaur tracks found in Arabian Peninsula
Friday, May 23, 2008
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/a/a8/First_Dinosaur_Tracks_from_the_Arabian_Peninsula.jpg/220px-First_Dinosaur_Tracks_from_the_Arabian_Peninsula.jpg)
Image: Anne S. Schulp, Mohammed Al-Wosabi and Nancy J. Stevens.
A new study that was recently carried by the online publication PLoS ONE describes the finding of dinosaur tracks on the Arabian Peninsula. The first of the discoveries was of a two-footed tridactyl. These tracks showed that the animal had taken steps with an average length of just over a metre. The tracks were pointing in the SSW direction.
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/b/b7/Arabian_Peninsula_dust_SeaWiFS.jpg/220px-Arabian_Peninsula_dust_SeaWiFS.jpg)
The study noted that "west of the tridactyl trackway, 11 subparallel quadrupedal trackways preserve evidence of large and small quadrupedal animals traveling together in a herd." The study also noted that there may have been additional tracks that were not discovered.
The report described the method of finding the tracks: "Trackways were exposed by clearing away sand, small rocks and debris." The tracks were found in Madar, 47 km north of the Yemeni capital.
Mohammed Al-Daheri, a journalist from the area of the discovery, was the first person to discover the existence of these tracks in the area. Anne S. Schulp, Mohammed Al-Wosabi and Nancy J. Stevens were subsequently contacted and asked to carry out the study.
Sources
- "Dinosaur Tracks Discovered on Arabian Peninsula" — Scientific American, May 22, 2008
- "First Dinosaur Tracks from the Arabian Peninsula" — PLoS One, May 21, 2008