Physical Sciences and Mathematics Commons^™

Morphometric Analysis Of Dinosaur Tracks From Southwest Arkansas, R. Shell, Stephen K. Boss

Journal of the Arkansas Academy of Science

Dinosaur trackways were discovered in Cretaceous De Queen Limestone strata in Howard County, Arkansas, in June 2011. Multiple trackways with variably sized tridactyl tracks were exposed in a commercial quarry, suggesting multiple theropod species or adult and juvenile tracks of a single species. Results of morphometric analyses of 32 plaster casts from selected trackways are reported in an effort to identify the specific track-making dinosaurs and differentiate large and small tracks. Track measurements included length and width of each track, the lengths and widths of each digit impression, and the angular spread (divarication) between digit impressions. Twenty-nine plaster casts were …