A 230-million-year-old dinosaur footprint has been confirmed as the oldest dinosaur fossil ever discovered in the neighboring country, a finding that underscores the potential for unexpected discoveries in urban environments. Remarkably, the fossil wasn’t unearthed by professional scientists, but by a high school student in Brisbane nearly seven decades ago.
According to the University of Queensland, the discovery was made by Bruce Runnegar, then a teenager, who found the 18.5-centimeter footprint embedded in stone at Petrie’s Quarry in Brisbane in 1958.
The fossil remained in his possession for decades without formal study, until its significance was recently confirmed.
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A Compact Footprint Holding a Massive History
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Bruce Runnegar and his discovery. Photo: The University of Queensland
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Research led by Dr. Anthony Romilio from UQ’s Dinosaur Lab revealed the fossil is the only dinosaur footprint ever found in an Australian capital city.
“This also shows how valuable finds can remain hidden in unexpected places,” Dr. Romilio said.
He explained the footprint likely formed when a dinosaur walked along a waterway, with the impression preserved in sandstone over millions of years. The discovery came to light after the stone was cut for construction projects throughout Brisbane.
Runnegar, who frequented the quarry with friends to search for fossils, found the slab of stone bearing the dinosaur track. The original site is now covered by urban development, making this fossil the sole remaining evidence from the area.
The Origins of an Ancient Brisbane Dinosaur
 Anthony Romilio and the analysis of the dinosaur footprint’s shape from Runnegar’s locate. Photo: The University of Queensland |
Analysis indicates the footprint was made by a small, two-legged dinosaur, likely an early relative of the sauropodomorphs – the long-necked dinosaurs that emerged later. Based on the size of the footprint, the animal is estimated to have stood roughly 75-80 centimeters tall at the hip and weighed around 140 kilograms.
Bruce Runnegar, the teenage discoverer of the fossil, went on to earn a doctorate from UQ and became a paleontology lecturer at the University of New England and the University of California, Los Angeles. He frequently used the fossil in his teaching, showcasing it to students as a unique example of a trace fossil formed by a large animal in ancient sediment.
“Here’s an exceptional example of a track fossil, because the footprint was formed by a large animal pressing into the ground, leaving a clear shape,” Runnegar said.
He added that his decision to submit the fossil for official documentation stemmed from his admiration for Dr. Romilio’s ability to reconstruct and map dinosaur tracks scientifically. The fossil is now officially recorded and housed at the Queensland Museum.
The study’s findings were published in the journal Alcheringa on February 1, 2026, under the title “Earliest Australian dinosaur: ichnofossils from the Carnian Aspley Formation of Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.”
(rhr/twu)
