Copper Ridge Dinosaur Tracksite

The Copper Ridge Dinosaur Tracksite preserves unusual tracks of a long-necked herbivorous dinosaur, or sauropod, along with two different sizes of meat-eating dinosaur, or theropod, tracks. It was the first place in Utah where sauropod tracks were discovered, and it also shows a large sauropod making a right turn roughly 150 million years ago, evidence paleontologists have not matched elsewhere for an abrupt change in direction. Theropod tracks at the site indicate that an injured animal limped along an ancient sandbar. Together, these tracks offer insight into the past by helping paleontologists estimate an animal's approximate size, speed, direction of travel, environment, and aspects of daily life that bones alone cannot reveal.

Utah · United States