Small theropod-dominated dinosaur footprint assemblages in the Middle Jurassic Valtos Sandstone and Kilmaluag Formations on the Isle of Skye, Scotland

Blakesley, T ORCID: 0009-0002-0081-3856, dePolo, PE ORCID: 0000-0002-3023-9667, Ross, DA, Clark, NDL and Brusatte, SL (2025) Small theropod-dominated dinosaur footprint assemblages in the Middle Jurassic Valtos Sandstone and Kilmaluag Formations on the Isle of Skye, Scotland. Royal Society open science, 12 (9). p. 251016. ISSN 2054-5703

Preview

Text Small theropod dominated dinosaur footprintassemblages in the MiddleJurassic Valtos Sandstoneand Kilmaluag Formationson the Isle of Skye.pdf - Published Version Available under License Creative Commons Attribution. Download (130MB) | Preview

Abstract

Middle Jurassic deposits on the Isle of Skye, Scotland, are improving our understanding of the distribution, palaeoenvironmental preferences and behaviour of theropod dinosaurs from a time when the global fossil record is sparse. Here, we describe and classify 185 Bathonian-aged ex situ dinosaur tracks from Skye's Trotternish Peninsula-many described for the first time and imaged using photogrammetric techniques-into four morphotypes within a new Hebridean series. In the freshwater, closed-lagoonal Kilmaluag Formation at Lùb Score, smaller morphotypes are more abundant than larger equivalents in the freshwater-brackish fluviodeltaic Valtos Sandstone Formation at Valtos. Although assessable outcrops of track-bearing horizons are limited, we infer that the proximity to, or suitability of, specific palaeoenvironments for different-sized trackmakers may influence assemblage composition. Scarce surfaces with multiple tracks indicate potential trackmaker behaviours in respective palaeoenvironments, including foraging at Valtos and post-hatchling care at Lùb Score. The tracks most likely represent traces of a large megalosaurid and multiple smaller-bodied basal coelurosaurian or non-coelurosaurian (e.g. Ceratosauria, Megalosauroidea, Allosauroidea) theropods. The documentation of these trackmakers and their behaviours further enriches our understanding of dinosaur faunas during this poorly known time.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	Bathonian; Isle of Skye; Kilmaluag Formation; Middle Jurassic; Valtos Sandstone Formation; dinosaur footprints; dinosaur tracks; theropod footprints; theropod tracks; 3709 Physical Geography and Environmental Geoscience; 31 Biological Sciences; 3103 Ecology; 3104 Evolutionary Biology; 37 Earth Sciences; 3705 Geology
Subjects:	Q Science > QE Geology > QE701 Paleontology
Divisions:	Biological and Environmental Sciences (from Sep 19)
Publisher:	The Royal Society
Date of acceptance:	5 August 2025
Date of first compliant Open Access:	24 October 2025
Date Deposited:	24 Oct 2025 14:12
Last Modified:	24 Oct 2025 14:15
DOI or ID number:	10.1098/rsos.251016
URI:	https://researchonline.ljmu.ac.uk/id/eprint/27413

View Item