Ignotornis tracks, the first-reported Mesozoic avian footprints. Ignotornis mcconnelli is one of the most distinctive and well-preserved of all fossil bird footprints. It is also of historical importance as the first trackway of a Mesozoic bird ever reported.
The tracks occur in the late Albian-early Cenomanian South Platte Formation, which is in the upper part of the Cretaceous Dakota Group.
Ignotornis sample provides multiple lines of evidence that the track-maker was a small heron-like bird.
The presence of symmetrical ripples (formed by waves) and mud cracks indicates that the trackmaker was walking on or near a shoreline.
Sources:
1) Lockley et al., 2009: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0195667109000500
2) Houck, Lockley, Caldwell, Clark: https://books.google.com/books?id=RLjECQAAQBAJ&pg=PA115&lpg=PA115
In geology, ripple marks are sedimentary structures and indicate agitation by water (current or waves) or wind.
Track site is located in Colorado, USA.
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