When Dinosaurs Walked Across Oceans: The 6,000 km Mystery

Which animal could walk for a day and leave footprints 6,000 kilometers apart? A dinosaur! But there’s a catch… you’d have to wait 120 million years.


An international team of researchers, led by Southern Methodist University (SMU) paleontologist Louis L. Jacobs, discovered matching dinosaur footprints on opposite sides of the Atlantic Ocean. Over 260 nearly identical footprints were found in Brazil and Cameroon (South America and Africa), dating back to a similar time and geological period.


Spanning 45 million years, the Early Cretaceous Period marked the beginning of Gondwana’s breakup—the supercontinent that had previously split from Pangea. During this time, Brazil and Africa were still connected in several places, forming part of Gondwana. The rivers and lakes that flowed through this area provided habitats for animals and created mudflats that preserved their footprints for millions of years, allowing us to discover them today.



The preserved footprints from ancient mudflats offer a glimpse into the ecological and geological dynamics of the past. A series of connected footprints, dating back 120 million years and spanning two continents that are now far apart, strengthens our understanding of plate tectonics. For scientists, discovering such a "trail" that effectively traces where continents were once joined provides an invaluable reference point for validating tectonic models—it's one of the most exciting findings you could hope for.


Ecologically, it’s fascinating to glimpse the types of animals that lived during that time and their relative abundance. Most of the tracks found in these ancient pathways belong to theropods, the bipedal carnivorous dinosaurs, along with some from sauropods and ornithischians. Fossil remains of mammals, amphibians, and other vertebrates have also been discovered. While making assumptions about life from millions of years ago can be challenging, understanding the relative abundance and presence of these animals, and how they likely moved through these ancient waterways, provides valuable insights that can help us draw connections to modern ecosystems.


We are constantly learning more about the world we live in, and looking to the past can provide valuable insights into how our planet might change in the future. While not every discovery will be groundbreaking, each connection we make adds meaning. Whether it’s realizing that the continents were once physically connected or learning that ladybugs start life as spiky larvae, these small revelations contribute to larger understandings.


So, we leave you with a question: What connections have you made today?


Navigate through space and time with this interactive Paleobiology Database!


Jacobs, L., Flynn, L., Scotese, C., Vineyard, D., Carbalho, I. 2024. The Early Cretaceous Borborema-Cameroon Dinosaur Dispersal Corridor. New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science Bulletin 95.

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