Sauropods, a genus of dinosaurs, the largest animal species that ever existed on Earth, stood out even among dinosaur species with their physical features. These gigantic animals with various species such as Brontosaurus, Brachiosaurus and Diplodocus were known to need four thick and strong legs to support their bodies.
In a study published in the International Journal of Plant and Animal Traces in 2019, it was suggested that these giant animals may have two legs, not four, and data supporting that they do not have four legs were reached. Recent studies by an American research team have confirmed this research.
It turns out that Sauropods lived only on land.
Years ago, a fossil researcher named Roland T. Bird discovered unusual dinosaur tracks in a field in Bandera County, Texas. What made Researcher Bird’s determination unusual was that the traces of dinosaurs belonged only to the limbs called manus (an animal’s forelimb). Roland T. Bird explained his observations in a letter published in 1940 as “These marks were undoubtedly the marks left by sauropods while swimming”.
The evolution of paleontology (fossil science) over time had determined that the Sauropods were land-dwelling, not aquatic creatures, as previously thought. The research of the fossil scientist Bird thus lost its validity. To explain why only forelimbs remained, the alternative view was that the animals’ forelimbs left a longer lasting mark on a given ground, as they supported most of their body weight.
“There may be only dinosaur species that walked on their forelimbs”
Marks from the manus of Sauropods were first identified in 2007 at a limestone quarry called Coffee Hollow in the Glen Rose Formation, where many dinosaur footprints from around 110 million years ago are preserved. These sauropoda tracks in Texas have caused researchers to reconsider the arguments put forward so far.
A group of researchers from Purdue University Fort Wayne and the Houston Museum of Natural Sciences studied three different prints of the Sauropods-only manus. The researchers stressed that although they cannot definitively determine what type of Sauropods left only manus marks, some dinosaur species walked only on their manus. Stating that it is impossible to reach a clear decision on the idea that the marks may be due to foot pressure or may have been left by swimming, the researchers stated that future discoveries are needed to solve the issue.
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