78 
TRIASSIC FOOTPRINTS IN QUEENSLAND 
F. S. Colliver 
For some time now footprints of Dinosours and possibly Amphibia 
have been known from the Mesozoic of Queensland. 
Three such occurrences are: 
1 . A footprint of a three-toed dinosaur found in the roof shale of 
the Lanefield Extended Colliery at Rosewood (Ball 1946, Qd. Govt. 
Min. J. 47, p. 179). 
2. A large number of confused footprints with some individual three- 
toed forms 2 " long and 20" span from the Balgowan Colliery 
roof shale (Moreton 1951, Qd. Govt. Min. J. 52, p. 582). 
3. Some 32 impressions noted at four positions some of 12" length 
and 12" span in line showing a heel to heel length of pace of 2 ' , 
from the old fire-clay workings near Mt. Morgan (Staines 1954, 
Qd, Govt. Min. J. 55, pp. 483-5). 
(Further collections at Balgowan Colliery were made by the Queens- 
land Museum in recent years when not only three-toed forms, but indefinite 
quadrupedal forms were also collected). 
The first two locations are in sediments referred to as Walloon and 
possibly approximately Jurassic in age. 
The freshwater deposits of Triassic Age in and about Brisbane, and 
in particular those of Petrie's Quarry at Albion with their great wealth 
of plant fossils had been searched for many years for vertebrate evidence 
without success. 
During the A.N.Z.A.A.S. excursion to Petrie's Quarry (May, 1951) 
Professor E. S. Hills of the Melbourne University, Geology Department, 
pointed out some rather indefinite markings as footprints. Although not 
convinced of their origin we made plaster casts in situ and the actual 
specimens were cut out at a later date and the evidence looked at more 
critically. Bearing in mind that these 'footprints' were made in very 
soft material, possibly water-logged or even under water, that the animal's 
weight pressed on the digits forcing the mud up under the sole of the 
foot, and that the sides of the prints would tend to flow inwards after the 
animal moved on, a fairly reasonable footprint was recognised. 
Smaller odd markings were later noted and the better preserved 
items showed that these were apparently impressions of forefeet; thus the 
animal was a quadruped with four feet on the ground. 
During each successive excursion to the locality a special search 
was made for further footprints and odd items were discovered and 
collected. In 1955 a lucky blow uncovered a lower layer in the floor of 
the quarry and showed up a very good footprint. Staff Members from 
the Geology Department later carefully uncovered an area approximately 
12' x 6' showing some impressions in several lines of tracks tending in 
the one general direction and two separate footprints cutting across these 
at right angles. The main tracks were of the general quadrapedal type 
noted previously, but the two odd tracks were apparently made by a 
three-toed biped having a stride approaching 7 feet. 
The hole made in the beginning which revealed this lower layer had 
apparently destroyed a footprint in the middle of the series, and thus we 
had ot least three possibilities to contend with: — 
o. If this print was a small one it could be of the quadrapedal fore- 
limb type. 
b. If larger and belonging to the general groups and in line with 
them it still could indicate the quadrupedal type of animal. 
c. If large and three-toed trending with the other two at approxi- 
mately right angles to the main lines it could have reduced the 
stride to half and also then the size of the bipedal type. 
