Author(s)

Silvério D. Figueiredo^1*, Carlos Neto de Carvalho², Pedro P. Cunha³, Ismar de Sousa Carvalho⁴

¹Instituto Politécnico de Tomar, CGeo-UC, Unidade Departamental de Arqueologia, Conservação e Restauro e Património, Quinta do Contador-Estrada da Serra, Tomar, Portugal.
²Serviço de Geologia do Município de Idanha-a-Nova, Geopark Naturtejo Mundial da UNESCO, Avenida Joaquim Morão, Idanha-a-Nova, IDL, Instituto Dom Luiz, Faculdade de Ciências da Universidade de Lisboa, Campo Grande, Lisboa.
³Universidade de Coimbra, MARE, Dep. Ciências da Terra, R. Sílvio Lima, Coimbra, Portugal.
⁴Universidade Federal do Rio de Janeiro, Instituto de Geociências, CCMN Cidade Universitária, Ilha do Fundão, Rio de Janeiro, Brasil.

We present a new tracksite with multiple dinosaur tracks from the lowermost Barremian (Lower Cretaceous) of the Cape Espichel (Sesimbra, Portugal). The tracks are localized on three beds on the top carbonate beds of the Areia do Mastro Formation. Those bioclastic, nodular limestones were deposited in a very shallow subtidal-intertidal, restricted lagoon environment. The track surfaces are very dinoturbated, with a substantial number of tracks. Several tracks assign to sauropods, ornithopods and theropods dinosaurs were recorded. Due to heavy bioturbation and the preservation conditions, it is not possible to define trackways; some preliminary work done on the tracks could disclose some behaviours of their producers. Several species of carnivore and herbivore dinosaurs crossed that large area at different times. Herbivores may have used the lagoon margin as passage between feeding spots, while carnivores frequented the area to hunt in groups or individually.

Trampled Surface, Dinosaurs, Locomotion Behavior, Lower Cretaceous, Cape Espichel, Portugal, Iberia

Figueiredo, S. , Carvalho, C. , Cunha, P. and Carvalho, I. (2021) New Dinosaur Tracks from the Lower Barremian of Portugal (Areia do Mastro Formation, Cape Espichel). Journal of Geoscience and Environment Protection, 9, 84-96. doi: 10.4236/gep.2021.91007.