Omnisaura
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Footprint type

Dinehichnus

Lockley et al. 1998

Dinehichnus is a footprint type: the name is for the fossil footprints themselves. The animal that made them is not known for certain. Its footprints are found in rocks 161.5–143.1 million years old in 5 countries, most often Portugal and the United States.

Confidence labels
How sure are we?0 high11 medium6 lowHow we rate confidence

Confidence labels are switched off. Facts with low confidence, or where sources disagree, still carry a small dot: tap it for the reason.

At a glance

Data as of 12 October 2026
161.5–143.1 Ma
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
252 million years ago20114366

Solid: the ages of its dated fossils, 161.5–143.1 million years ago (Omnisaura's calculation). Pale: the published range, 161.5–110.1 million years ago, which also counts records Omnisaura leaves out.

The last non-bird dinosaurs died out 66 million years ago. That's as far from us as the end of this bar.

Named by
Lockley et al. 1998
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.

Described in
M. G. Lockley, V. F. dos Santos, C. A. Meyer, A. P. Hunt (1998). A new dinosaur tracksite in the Morrison Formation, Boundary Butte, southeastern Utah. Modern Geology 23(1-4): 317–330.
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; its author and year match the naming authority (Lockley et al. 1998).
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. The publication the Paleobiology Database gives as the authority for this genus name, usually the one that first named and described it.

Type species
Dinehichnus socialis
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.

Dated to
Oxfordian to Albian, 161.5–110.1 million years ago
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.
Omnisaura calculation161.5–143.1 million years ago, from its dated fossil records
mediummedium: Omnisaura's calculation from 9 confirmed PBDB records.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.

Found in
Portugal
mediummedium: Only PBDB records it (5 records).
United States
mediummedium: Only PBDB records it (2 records).
China
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Poland
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Spain
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
mixedmixed: Levels differ between entries; each has its own.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: Union of all sources (ISO 3166).

Rock formations
Alcobaça
mediummedium: Only PBDB records it (4 records).
Morrison Formation
mediummedium: Only PBDB records it (2 records).
Anning
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Freixial
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Glowaczów
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
mixedmixed: Levels differ between entries; each has its own.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: Canonical names, automatic and editor-approved matches applied.

Footprint family
Dryosauridae
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.

Parent group
Dryosauridae
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.

Known from
Footprints and traces
Sources

Given by: Paleobiology Database (what the name was based on).

Made by
Not known for certain. Footprints rarely show which animal made them.
Sources: Paleobiology Database (CC BY 4.0), Natural History Museum Data Portal (CC0 1.0), Wikidata (CC0 1.0)Confidence levels and gaps are Omnisaura's own assessment.

Gaps are answers

What isn't known yet

  • The animal that made them: not known for certain, as for most footprint types.
  • Order: no source we use gives it yet.
  • Common names: no source we use gives it yet.
  • What it was named after: no source we use gives it yet.
  • Held back: 2 fossil records left out: identified only tentatively (for example "cf." or "?").
  • Resting on one source: 5 facts come from a single source with nothing against them (rated medium): authority (PBDB); type species (PBDB); parent group (PBDB); family (PBDB); age (headline) (PBDB).

Size, diet and behaviour aren't covered yet. Omnisaura leaves them out rather than guess.

Where sources disagree

None open. Where our sources overlap, they agree on everything shown here.

Did it meet…?

?

No. Dinehichnus had gone at least 59.5 million years before Tyrannosaurus appears in the fossil record.

Going by the ages and rock formations of their dated fossils, as on the map. Compare their fossil sites on the map.

Found in the same rocks

Genera and other fossil types from the same formations, from rocks of the same age.

AllosaurusCamarasaurusDiplodocusStegosaurusApatosaurusCamptosaurusBrontosaurusCeratosaurusDryosaurusBarosaurusNanosaurusBrachiosaurusHesperosaurusTorvosaurusHaplocanthosaurusCoelurusand 20 more

Same family

Other genera in Dryosauridae with a full profile.

DryosaurusValdosaurus

Credits

Where this page comes from

  • Paleobiology DatabaseCC BY 4.0 · fossil records, ages, classification
  • Natural History Museum Data PortalCC0 1.0 · catalogued specimens
  • WikidataCC0 1.0 · names and identifiers
  • OmnisauraOmnisaura editorial · confidence levels and gaps
  • PaleoMAP PaleoCoastlines (Kocsis and Scotese 2021)CC BY 4.0 · ancient coastlines on the small map
  • Natural EarthPublic domain · today's coastlines