Footprint type
Metatetrapous
Metatetrapous is a footprint type: the name is for the fossil footprints themselves. The animal that made them is not known for certain. Its footprints are found in rocks 139.1–137.1 million years old in Germany.
Confidence labels are switched off. Facts with low confidence, or where sources disagree, still carry a small dot: tap it for the reason.
At a glance
Data as of 11 October 2026- Named by
- Ballerstedt 1922
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Described in
- R. T. McCrea, M. G. Lockley, C. A. Meyer (2001). Global distribution of purported ankylosaur track occurrences. The Armored Dinosaurs, K. Carpenter (ed.), Indiana University Press, Bloomington: 413–454.
low
low: PBDB gives this publication for the name, but its author or year differ from the naming authority (Ballerstedt 1922): it may be a later work, such as one that renamed or redefined the genus.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. The publication the Paleobiology Database gives as the authority for this genus name, usually the one that first named and described it.
- Type species
- Metatetrapous valdense
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Dated to
- Berriasian, 139.1–137.1 million years ago
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.Omnisaura calculation139.1–137.1 million years ago, from its dated fossil recordslow
low: Omnisaura's calculation from only 2 dated record(s).Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Found in
- Germany
medium
medium: Only PBDB records it (2 records).Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: Union of all sources (ISO 3166).
- Rock formations
- Bückeberg
medium
medium: Only PBDB records it (2 records).Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: Canonical names, automatic and editor-approved matches applied.
- Parent group
- Ankylosauria
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Species named in its records
- Metatetrapous valdensis
Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database (the species its fossil records are identified as).
- Known from
- Footprints and traces
Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database (what the name was based on).
- Made by
- Not known for certain. Footprints rarely show which animal made them.
Gaps are answers
What isn't known yet
- The animal that made them: not known for certain, as for most footprint types.
- Order: no source we use gives it yet.
- Family: no source we use gives it yet.
- Common names: no source we use gives it yet.
- What it was named after: no source we use gives it yet.
- Resting on one source: 5 facts come from a single source with nothing against them (rated medium): name (PBDB); authority (PBDB); type species (PBDB); parent group (PBDB); age (headline) (PBDB).
Size and appearance aren't covered yet, and diet and way of life only as PBDB infers them for the wider group. Omnisaura leaves the rest out rather than guess.
Where sources disagree
None open. Where our sources overlap, they agree on everything shown here.
Did it meet…?
No. Metatetrapous had gone at least 53.5 million years before Tyrannosaurus appears in the fossil record.
Going by the ages and rock formations of their dated fossils, as on the map. Compare their fossil sites on the map.
Connections
Genera linked to Metatetrapous by where and when their fossils were found, by classification and by who named them. Select a name to open its page.
Found in the same rocks 4
Genera and other fossil types from the same rock units, from rocks of overlapping age, the most shared fossil sites first.
Same parent group: Ankylosauria 2
Other genera in Ankylosauria with a full profile.
Found in Germany 4
Other genera found in Germany, from rocks of overlapping age, the most fossil sites there first.
Credits
Where this page comes from
- Paleobiology DatabaseCC BY 4.0 · fossil records, ages, classification
- OmnisauraOmnisaura editorial · confidence levels and gaps
- PaleoMAP PaleoCoastlines (Kocsis and Scotese 2021)CC BY 4.0 · ancient coastlines on the small map
- Natural EarthPublic domain · today's coastlines