Dinosaur footprints dating back 65 million years discovered in Mexico

INAH specialists have confirmed the discovery of at least 50 fossilized dinosaur footprints in a streambed near San Juan de los Plátanos, in Apatzingán, Michoacán, Mexico. The tracks, dating back approximately 65 million years, are believed to belong to carnivorous theropods, smaller raptor-like dinosaurs, and herbivorous hadrosaurids. Photo: CINAH Michoacán.

APATZINGÁN, MEXICO.— A remarkable discovery in a quiet corner of western Mexico has opened a window onto a world that disappeared millions of years ago. What began with local residents noticing unusual markings in a streambed has turned into an important paleontological find: at least 50 fossilized dinosaur footprints, preserved in stone for approximately 65 million years.

The tracks were discovered near San Juan de los Plátanos, a community in the municipality of Apatzingán, Michoacán. According to Mexico's National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH), the footprints were left by several types of dinosaurs, including large meat-eating predators, smaller raptor-like animals, and herbivorous duck-billed dinosaurs.

For researchers, the discovery offers much more than evidence that dinosaurs once walked through the region. It provides a rare opportunity to investigate how these prehistoric animals moved, interacted, and shared their environment during the final chapter of the dinosaur age.

A discovery made by the community

The story began when residents of San Juan de los Plátanos came across impressions in a streambed that appeared to have been made by unusually large animals. Recognizing that the markings might be significant, they contacted the regional INAH office.

Raymundo Cervantes Barriga, a researcher at the INAH Michoacán Center, traveled to the site to examine the impressions. His assessment confirmed that the markings were fossilized footprints belonging to both carnivorous and herbivorous dinosaurs.

So far, the team has documented approximately 50 footprints across a sedimentary rock surface covering around 40 square meters along the riverbank. The impressions measure between 12 and 48 centimeters in length, with some reaching 30 centimeters in width.

Researchers believe the track-bearing rock may extend beyond the area already examined, raising the possibility that many more footprints remain hidden nearby.

Mexico's Secretary of Culture, Claudia Curiel de Icaza, praised the local residents whose observations brought the site to the attention of specialists. She emphasized that INAH's responsibility is now to study and preserve the discovery so that future generations can learn from it.

Predators and plant-eaters in the same prehistoric landscape

Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the discovery is the variety of dinosaur footprints identified at the site.

Based on their size, shape, depth, and toe patterns, researchers have tentatively associated the tracks with three dinosaur families.

Some impressions appear to have been made by large carnivorous theropods, possibly members of the tyrannosaurid family. These formidable animals could stand up to four meters tall and left distinctive three-toed footprints.

Other tracks suggest the presence of smaller, agile predators resembling dromaeosaurids, the group popularly associated with raptors. These dinosaurs may have stood around two meters tall.

The third group appears to belong to hadrosaurids, commonly known as duck-billed dinosaurs. These large herbivores, which could also reach heights of approximately four meters, left broad, three-toed impressions with rounded ends.

All identifications remain preliminary. Scientists will need to conduct further research before determining precisely which species passed through the area.

A landscape transformed by millions of years

Today, the landscape surrounding Apatzingán bears little resemblance to the environment that existed during the Late Cretaceous period.

Cervantes Barriga believes the region once contained bodies of water that attracted dinosaurs searching for food and possibly places to drink.

Over millions of years, sediment buried and preserved the impressions left by the animals as they moved across the ancient landscape. Geological processes eventually transformed those sediments into rock, allowing traces of their movements to survive to the present day.

Unlike fossilized bones, which reveal an animal's anatomy, footprints can provide clues about behavior. Their spacing, orientation, and distribution may help scientists reconstruct how dinosaurs walked, where they traveled, and whether different kinds of animals occupied the same environment.

"A discovery of this kind opens a window onto a period that exists in everyone's imagination but that we rarely have the opportunity to study," said archaeologist José Luis Punzo Díaz.

He explained that the variety of footprints could eventually reveal new information about dinosaur locomotion, movement, coexistence, and behavior in what is now Mexico.

Scientists begin documenting the site

A multidisciplinary team from INAH began formal documentation on October 21, 2026.

The work involves paleontologists, archaeologists, and geologists using different methods to study and preserve the impressions.

Geologist Jasinto Robles Camacho is analyzing rock samples, while archaeologists María Fernanda Cabrera and José Luis Punzo Díaz are overseeing photogrammetry, a technique that uses overlapping photographs to create detailed three-dimensional records.

Biologist and paleontologist José Luis Ávila is preparing molds of the footprints, and paleontologist Carlos A. Hernández Luna is assisting with their preliminary identification.

These records will allow researchers to study the impressions in detail while helping protect the original site.

Significant areas still await examination, and specialists anticipate that the number of documented footprints will grow as the investigation continues.

A new chapter in Mexico's prehistoric history

The Apatzingán discovery would become the fourth known dinosaur footprint locality in Michoacán, joining previously identified sites at Playa Azul, El Aguaje, and the area between Tiquicheo and Tuzantla.

Across Mexico, INAH has registered slightly more than 30 dinosaur footprint sites, including locations in Coahuila, Chihuahua, Durango, Oaxaca, Puebla, and Sonora.

Although the country possesses extensive paleontological resources, sites preserving evidence from such distant periods remain relatively uncommon.

For Cervantes Barriga, the importance of the discovery extends beyond scientific research. He hopes it will also generate pride and curiosity in a region facing significant social challenges.

The footprints could become a powerful educational resource for local communities, particularly children who may never have imagined that dinosaurs once walked across the land surrounding their homes.

For now, the ancient tracks remain embedded in a riverbank in Michoacán, silent evidence of animals that disappeared long before human beings existed.

Their discovery is a reminder that some of the most extraordinary chapters of Earth's history are still waiting to be uncovered, sometimes by ordinary people who simply recognize that something unusual lies beneath their feet.