4-year-old finds dino footprint in Wales!
Check out this roarsome discovery…
One of the best-preserved dinosaur footprints ever found in the UK has been discovered by a little girl on a Welsh beach…
Last month, 4-year-old Lily Wilder was walking along a rocky beach in Wales with her family when an unusual-looking boulder caught her eye. When she and her Dad stopped to take a closer look, they quickly realised it wasn’t just any old rock – it had a fossilised dinosaur footprint on it!
Excited by what they might have found, the Wilder family called National Museum Wales to tell them about the discovery. Fossil expert Cindy Howells came to investigate, and confirmed what Lily suspected: it was a prehistoric footprint!
The amazing fossil has been examined by palaeontologists (scientists who study dinosaurs), who estimate that the footprint is around 220 million years old!
It belongs to a group of fossils called Grallator footprints, left by a variety of small dinosaurs, including the American Coelophysis. Lily’s discovery measures just over 10cm long, which means that the dinosaur who left it probably stood between 75cm and 2m tall! That’s about as tall as an emu!
The dinosaur would have been a slender animal, which walked on its two hind feet and actively hunted other small animals and insects.
Lily made her discovery on Bendrick’s Bay near Barry in South Wales. This area is a Site of Scientific Interest, known for its fossil finds!
“This fossilised dinosaur footprint is one of the best-preserved examples from anywhere in the UK“, said Cindy Howells, who works with fossils at National Museum Wales. “It will really help palaeontologists to get a better idea about how early dinosaurs walked.”
Thanks to Lily and her family, this fossil has been extracted and moved to National Museum Cardiff. There, it can be enjoyed by others for generations, and could have a significant impact on scientific research. Amazing work, Lily!
If you live near a rocky beach, make sure you keep your eyes peeled – your discovery could be the next to hit the headlines! Check out Nat Geo Kids’ Quick Guide to Fossil Hunting for tips on what to look for!
Thanks to National Museum Wales and the Wilder family for the images used in this article!
Have you ever found a fossil? Let us know in the comments below!
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COMMENTS
WOW, amazing find!
AMAZING!!
HOW COME THEY GET TO SEE DINO FOOTPRINTS AND WE ALL CANT GO NOT EVEN YOU OR ME!!SAD TIMES,SAD TIMES!!!!!!!!
HOW COME THEY GET TO SEE DINO FOOTPRINTS AND NO YOU OR ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cool
epic
Thats so cool!
I love dinosaurs!
Ohhhhhhh
LOL
Amazing! I can't believe that this kid is only 4 years old!
That is so cool.
awesome
COOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I like this website
WOW thats lucky for her
wow
hi joseph
I found some fossils
Great interesting book Loved reading it
Cool
Lucky
So lucky
Wow ,cool
OH MY GOD THAT HAS TO BE THE MOST AWESOME THING EVER
4years old and you found a dino footprint! COOL!!!
4 years old and you found a dino footprint! Cool!!!
WOW!
very very lucky
that would be so cool!!!
shes so lucky!!!
she has a very good eye
Lily's only four and she found a dinosaur footprint wow she's so lucky!!!
this is cool
I found a lot of dinosaur fossils lol
that is so cool
https://www.natgeokids.com/wp-content/themes/natgeokids/images/badges/4.png
that is so nice she is one lucky kid in the world but how she is only 4 years old! man i wish i could find one.
I wish I could find a prehistoric dinosaur footprint! That is one lucky toddler. Good job lily. :) so good I am surprised
hi
I found a fossil in alberta
YES!!!
that is amazing!
wow!!!
Very cool like the stuff on this website.
awesome!!!
cool
Cool
Awesome
Wow lily ! Great work
Cool
wow so cool how did you find it?
well i want to
Hope you find more
hi
i wish i found one
SO LUCKY!
Wonderful 7
COOL
Cool
That is one lucky toddler!
cool
Wow!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
wow amazing super I bet it helped the scientists
Wow, that's amazing. I wish I could find a prehistoric dinosaur footprint!
Amazing I heard about it on the news but this is a much closer look! It really is a roarsome discovery!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Cool
love this
Yay
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What an ace find! I think it’s super cool!
Well done
good job lilly
oooooo noice
ooo
ooo
cool
wow
Awesome :)
wowzers ! she's only four!
What an amazing find she's only four years old well done lilly
nice
Wow!!!
cool
So good I'm surprised!!!
YAY!
LOVE IT
COOL!!!!!
Wow
hi
wow
COOL!
I wish i found one
Cool
She is so lucky!
well done!
Wow! What an amazing discovery.
GREAT
That is amazing! I want to find one!
Well Done!
Love it well done!
Amazing find Lily.
Love it, Well Done Lily!!
nice!
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