Bormio, Italy – In a remarkable paleontological find, an estimated 20,000 dinosaur footprints dating back 210 million years have been discovered in the Stelvio National park, near the site of the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics [[2]]. The incredibly well-preserved tracks-believed to be from long-necked, herbivorous dinosaurs-were unexpectedly revealed on a high-altitude rock face by a wildlife photographer [[1]]. This discovery offers a rare window into the Triassic Period and provides new insights into dinosaur behavior, coming just as the Lombardy region prepares to host the world for the Winter Games.
Bormio, Italy – A wildlife photographer stumbled upon one of the largest and oldest known collections of dinosaur footprints, dating back approximately 210 million years to the Triassic Period, in a northern Italian national park near the site of the upcoming 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan Cortina, authorities announced Tuesday.
The discovery within the Stelvio National Park is remarkable due to the sheer number of prints – estimated at up to 20,000 spread across roughly 3 miles – and the location’s unique geological history. Experts say the area, near the Swiss border, was once a prehistoric coastline where dinosaur footprints had never before been found.
“Certainly, this time reality surpasses fantasy,” stated Cristiano Dal Sasso, a paleontologist at the Natural History Museum of Milan, after receiving the initial report from wildlife photographer Elio Della Ferrera.
The footprints are believed to have been left by herbivorous, bipedal, long-necked dinosaurs reaching up to 33 feet in length and weighing as much as 4 tons, similar to a Plateosaurus, according to Dal Sasso. Some of the prints measure 40 centimeters wide, with visible claw marks.
Evidence suggests the dinosaurs traveled in herds and occasionally paused in circular formations, potentially as a defensive tactic. The find offers a rare glimpse into the behavior of these ancient creatures.
“There are very clear traces of individuals who walked at a slow, calm, and rhythmic pace, without running,” Dal Sasso explained at a press conference.
Della Ferrera made the discovery in September while photographing deer and vultures. His camera focused on a vertical rock face approximately 2,000 feet above the nearest road. The location, between 7,900 and 9,200 feet above sea level, and the north-facing orientation of the rock face – which remains largely in shadow – made the footprints particularly difficult to spot without a powerful lens, Dal Sasso noted.
Della Ferrera described being initially drawn to something unusual and scaling a steep, rocky wall to investigate further. “The great surprise wasn’t so much discovering the footprints, but discovering such a huge number,” he commented. “There are really tens of thousands of footprints up there, more or less well preserved.”
The park entrance where the footprints were found is located just 1.2 miles from Bormio, the mountain town set to host the men’s alpine skiing events during the Winter Olympics, February 6-22.
Attilio Fontana, the regional governor of Lombardy, hailed the discovery as a “gift for the Olympics,” though the site is currently too remote to access during the winter months, and no plans for public access have been announced. This discovery underscores the potential for further paleontological finds in unexpected locations, and the ongoing relevance of studying Earth’s prehistoric past.
