La Mataseca site

Soria
Bretún

Located in Bretún next to the road, the site has a small parking area. The site dates from the early Cretaceous. The fossil tracks belong to theropod dinosaurs (carnivores over six meters long) and ornithopods (vegetarians). These are separate tracks that do not form trails. We can also see a replica of an ornithopod dinosaur: the triceratops.

At this site it is possible to make out the wrinkled skin of a dead dinosaur next to its skull and limbs. 

The theropods were a group of predatory dinosaurs. They had two long, strong back legs that enabled them to run at high speeds. Their front legs were short and boasted very sharp claws. Their heads featured very strong jaws with sharp teeth. When this group of dinosaurs first appeared the individual members were short and light. But over time, they kept gaining strength, weight and power, albeit losing some speed, which enabled them to hunt large prey. Their fossil tracks are normally tridactyl, although they can give the impression of a fourth toe. Even though the fossil tracks can be confused with ornithopods, their width is frequently smaller in relation to the length.

The ornithopods were more social dinosaurs (they moved around in packs), had very specialized teeth for grinding vegetation, and powerful tails used for defensive purposes. One curious feature of these animals is they walked on two legs when they were young, but on four as full adults. Their tracks were tridactyl, similar to those of the theropods (when the fourth toe did not make an impression), but were wider in relation to their length since they had paws instead of claws.

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