"We’re getting Jurassic Park irl" — Internet reacts to hundreds of dinosaur footprints discovered in a UK quarry

Hundreds of dinosaur footprints have been discovered at a quarry in Oxfordshire, Southern England. The footprints, which date back to 166 million years, are at Dewars Farm Quarry.

As per BBC, Gary Johnson, a worker at Dewars Farm Quarry, first observed the footprints while stripping clay. His observation of many unusual "bumps and dips" led to the excavation of five trackways wherein the longest one stretched over 150 meters.

One of the trackways probably belongs to a cetiosaurus which is a long-necked herbivorous and the fifth trackway likely belongs to a carnivorous megalosaurus that had three-toed feet with claws. Moreover, experts suggest that the footprint site could be one of the largest in the world.

Netizens were quick to react to the news of the dinosaur footprint discovery via X wherein an internet user tweeted:

"we’re getting jurassic park irl"

"Looking at these footprint makes me wonder how many untouched prehistoric discoveries are just sitting under construction sites and parking lots across the world." an X user commented.

"We got dinosaurs being brought back to life before GTA 6" another X user mentioned.

"This tweet is setting the tone for 2025 that everyone dreamed of…. Can you smell those headlines? “Killer pre historic reptiles are BACK”" another internet user remarked.

Additionally, some netizens took digs at the news expressing disbelief:

"jurassic park promo," wrote an X user.

"Dino steps found? Bet they're serving looks! 👀" a netizen commented

"so you’re telling dinosaurs are real… and british!??" another netizen mentioned

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"This is one of the most impressive track sites I've ever seen": Micropalaeontologist comments on dinosaur footprints in UK quarry

According to a report by BBC dated January 2, 2024, Gary Johnson, a worker at the Dewars Farm Quarry spotted the dinosaur footprint tracks. He told the publication that he was clearing clay when he hit a hump and dismissed it thinking it was a ground abnormality.

However, after three meters, there was another bump followed by one more bump at three meters. The quarry worker said that it was "surreal" and a "tingling moment" as he thought he was the first person to see the dino footprints. Commenting on the footprints, Professor Kirsty Edgar, a micropalaeontologist from the University of Birmingham told BBC:

"This is one of the most impressive track sites I've ever seen, in terms of scale, in terms of the size of the tracks. You can step back in time and get an idea of what it would have been like, these massive creatures just roaming around, going about their own business."

The team of researchers at the UK quarry studied the trackways in detail and also made casts of the tracks. Additionally, they took over 20,000 photos to create 3D models of the entire site and individual dino footprints.

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In its report, BBC mentioned that a future course of action for the dino footprint trackways hasn't been announced or decided yet. However, scientists are working with quarry operator Smiths Bletchington and Natural England who will offer options for preserving the site in the future.