For the first time, paleontologists may have found a trackway made by an adult Tyrannosaurus rex! 🦖👣
Discovered in the Hell Creek Formation of southwestern North Dakota, this remarkable trackway preserves four connected three-toed footprints, each roughly 1 meter (3 feet) long. The trackway stretches for about 7 meters (23 feet) and dates back approximately 66.5 million years.
The trackmaker is believed to have been an adult Tyrannosaurus rex based on the size and morphology of the footprints, their geological age and location, and the presence of T. rex fossils in the same formation. However, as with any fossil trackway, the identification is not absolutely certain.
What’s even more fascinating is what these footprints can tell us about how T. rex actually moved.
The trackway suggests the animal was walking at an estimated speed of around 1.5–2 meters per second — roughly 3.4–4.5 miles per hour.
Fossil bones can tell us what an animal looked like.
Fossil footprints can tell us what that animal was actually doing.
In this episode, we’re taking a look at this incredible trackway and what it can tell us about the movements of the King of the Dinosaurs!
🦖 Four connected footprints
👣 Roughly 3-foot-long tracks
🌎 Hell Creek Formation
⏳ About 66.5 million years old
🚶 Estimated walking speed of 3.4–4.5 mph
🔬 Why trackways are so important for understanding dinosaur behavior
📄 READ THE SCIENTIFIC PAPER:
Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology, 2026
https://doi.org/10.1080/02724634.2026.2706201
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And as always…
LET’S GET PREHISTORIC! 🦖