Ancient dinosaur footprint dating back 100 million years discovered near coastal town

A monolithic dinosaur footprint of the Iguanodon species, which dates backmost implicit 100 cardinal years, has been recovered connected a formation successful England, SWNS reported.

Paleontologist Joe Thompson, a fossil usher with Wight Coast Fossils who unearthed the print, told Fox News Digital that helium made the find connected the Isle of Wight arsenic helium acceptable retired to the formation with the volition of finding immoderate fossils.

"The geology is cleanable for it," helium said successful an on-camera interview. (See the video astatine the apical of the article.)

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Thompson had been walking for an hr oregon 2 erstwhile helium came crossed a ample purple entity successful the clay.

"It turned retired it was an perfectly immense Iguanodon footprint," helium said.

Iguanodon fossils are rather communal each implicit the world, according to Thompson. Specimens person adjacent been recovered successful immoderate U.S. states, including Utah and Colorado. 

The dazzling facet of the find lies successful the monolithic size of the dinosaur's footprint, according to Thompson. (SWNS)

The Isle of Wight and the U.K. arsenic a whole are exceptionally affluent areas for fossil hunting, Thompson said.

Some of the astir celebrated dinosaurs from the Cretaceous play see the three-horned Triceratops and the elephantine Patagotitan — but those won't beryllium recovered connected the Isle of Wight, helium noted.

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Instead, radical are apt to find remnants of animals similar the Iguanodon, which near the elephantine footprint that Thompson discovered past week.

"They’re conscionable astonishing beasts," helium said of the dinosaurs, which could turn arsenic ample arsenic 32 to 36 feet long. "They walked astir successful immense groups eating vegetation — they were herbivores."

An Iguanodon skeleton is displayed astatine the Natural History Museum successful London. The footprint that Thompson recovered came from this species, helium said. (Mike Kemp/In Pictures via Getty Images)

The dazzling facet of the find lies successful its size, according to Thompson.

"This footprint was perfectly monolithic — conscionable nether a metre [roughly 3 feet] long. So a beauteous immense Iguanodon, a batch bigger than astir each different Iguanodon footprint recovered connected that conception of the coast," helium said.

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"It's imaginable it could beryllium a taxon of Iguanodon we don't cognize astir yet, due to the fact that it is simply a batch bigger than the different footprints recovered successful the somewhat older rocks connected the Isle of Wight."

"We're not truly going to cognize until we find fossils from those aforesaid layers [of rock]."

As the coast's layers are perpetually eroded by the sea, fossils bash crook up, making the Isle a fashionable tourist attraction. 

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Wight Coast Fossils, the institution for which Thompson conducts tours, leads groups along the shore to find pieces of history. 

"It's imaginable it could beryllium a taxon of Iguanodon we don't cognize astir yet."

Thompson precocious launched his ain company, South Coast Fossils, which offers radical the accidental to hunt for things similar shark teeth and fossil shells.

Digging into the cliff isn't allowed, but if those connected the circuit spot immoderate fossils that are washed retired onto the beach, they’re invited to instrumentality them home, helium said.

"It's ever bully to study it to a museum if it could beryllium thing important," Thompson added.

Joe Thompson, pictured here, besides recovered the fossilized jawbone of what could beryllium a caller taxon connected the Isle of Wright. (SWNS)

If the find does extremity up being recognized arsenic a caller assortment of Iguanodon, this wouldn’t beryllium the archetypal taxon Thompson has discovered on the Isle.

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"I really recovered a mammal jaw connected the northbound seashore of the Isle of Wight," helium said, speaking astir a 30 million-year-old bone. 

"Nobody truly knows what it could beryllium from, but astir apt from a tiny carnivorous mammal. So thing eating tiny rodents and worldly similar that. That's truly exciting."

(Joe Thompson, a paleontologist, describes however helium unearthed a 100-million-year-old dinosaur footprint connected a formation successful England. The "massive" people is of the Iguanodon species.)

Thompson’s Iguanodon find, portion impressive, has apt disappeared owed to the brushed clay successful which helium recovered it.

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"The brushed quality of the stone it is preserved successful means it astir apt won't past precise long. So the likelihood is that it's astir apt not disposable oregon accessible anymore, which is simply a shame," helium said.

"That makes it rather peculiar successful that way, that it's conscionable a fleeting glimpse of this astonishing footprint astir apt ne'er to beryllium seen again. So, rather fortunate I caught it successful time."