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Footprint type

Tetrasauropus

Sternberg 1932

Tetrasauropus 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 237–201.4 million years old in Lesotho, the United States and Argentina.

Confidence labels
How sure are we?0 high5 medium8 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
237–201.4 Ma
Triassic
Jurassic
Cretaceous
252 million years ago20114366

Solid: the ages of its dated fossils, 237–201.4 million years ago (Omnisaura's calculation). Pale: the published range, 170.9–66 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
Sternberg 1932
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.
Sources

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

Described in
C. M. Sternberg (1932). Dinosaur tracks from Peace River, British Columbia. National Museum of Canada Bulletin 68: 59–85. Read it
mediummedium: Only PBDB gives this; its author and year match the naming authority (Sternberg 1932).
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.

Dated to
Bajocian to Maastrichtian, 170.9–66 million years ago
disputedlow: Sources disagree and an editor has not ruled yet.
Omnisaura calculation237–201.4 million years ago, from its dated fossil records
mediummedium: Omnisaura's calculation from 3 confirmed PBDB records.
Sources

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

Found in
Argentina
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Lesotho
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
United States
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Sources

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

Rock formations
Cerro de Las Cabras
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Diavel
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Elliot Formation
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Nugget Sandstone
lowlow: Only one PBDB record.
Sources

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

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

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

Parent group
Tetrapodosauridae
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)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.
  • Type species: no source we use gives it yet.
  • 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: 1 fossil record left out: identified only tentatively (for example "cf." or "?").
  • Held back: 52 fossil records left out: identified as a related genus rather than this one.
  • Resting on one source: 4 facts come from a single source with nothing against them (rated medium): name (PBDB); authority (PBDB); parent group (PBDB); family (PBDB).

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

Where sources disagree

1 open

Age

  • 170.9–66 MaPBDB
  • 247–201.4 MaPBDB's own confirmed records

The ages of the records reach well beyond the published range. An editor hasn't ruled yet, so this is rated low until they do.

Did it meet…?

?

No. Tetrasauropus had gone at least 117.8 million years before Tyrannosaurus appears in the fossil record, a longer gap than the 66 million years between Tyrannosaurus and today.

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.

GrallatorEucnemesaurusMelanorosaurusBlikanasaurusPlateosauravusPseudotetrasauropusAnatrisauropusBosiutrisauropusEubrontesEvazoumMafatrisauropusPseudotrisauropusTrisauropodiscus

Same family

Other genera in Tetrapodosauridae with a full profile.

Tetrapodosaurus

Credits

Where this page comes from

  • Paleobiology DatabaseCC BY 4.0 · fossil records, ages, classification
  • Natural History Museum Data PortalCC0 1.0 · catalogued specimens
  • 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