Description of a theropod footprint from the Misiones Formation: first reliable fossil from the Mesozoic of Paraguay

Abstract

The Mesozoic fossil record from Paraguay is almost non-existent, being the only exception the mention of two currently missing vertebrate trackways, found in slabs of the sidewalks of the Iglesia de la Catedral and of the iglesia María Auxiliadora. It is thought that the slabs would have proceeded from the quarry San Cristóbal from the Misiones Department, SW-S of Asunción, from the Misiones Formation (probably Lower Cretaceous). Recently, in a new slab of the sidewalk of the Church Maria Auxiliadora, coming from the same quarry as the lost specimens, a medium-sized tridactyl footprint was found and studied in this contribution. The track exhibits characteristics belonging to theropod footprints. The footprint is not just the unique reliable evidence for the presence of dinosaurs in Paraguay, but also the first Mesozoic fossil of the country.