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Drought conditions help unearth 113 million year old dinosaur tracks

Posted at 4:18 PM, Aug 23, 2022
and last updated 2022-08-24 11:03:13-04

GLEN ROSE, Texas — The ongoing drought in Texas has done a slight bit of good in a part of the state when ancient dinosaur tracks were unearthed in a dried up river.

Tracks from an Acrocanthosaurus were found recently in Dinosaur Valley State Park just outside Dallas, CNN reports. A park officials said the dinosaur stood about 15 feet tall and weighed close to seven tons.

Like many states in the West and Southwest, Texas has been experiencing severe drought conditions which have impacted water availability. With the river inside the Texas state park having dried up, it allowed officials to make the find in areas that are usually under mud and water.

The park's Facebook page posted photos of the tracks, saying their location is "one of the largest dinosaur trackways in the world."

Tracks from a Sauroposeidon were also discovered. That dinosaur dwarfed the Acrocanthosaurus at a height of 60 feet tall and 44 tons.

While the find has become a park attraction in itself, it is not expected to be around for long as much-needed rains are expected to return to the area and once again hide the tracks under the river.