Footprint type
Otozoum
Otozoum 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 237–174.7 million years old in 8 countries, most often the United States and Canada.
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
- Hitchcock 1847
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Described in
- E. Hitchcock (1847). Description of two new species of fossil footmarks found in Massachusetts and Connecticut, or, of the animals that made them. The American Journal of Science and Arts, series 2 4(10): 46–57.
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this; its author and year match the naming authority (Hitchcock 1847).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.
- Dated to
- Norian, 227.3–205.7 million years ago
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.Omnisaura calculation237–174.7 million years ago, from its dated fossil recordsmedium
medium: Omnisaura's calculation from 24 confirmed PBDB records.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Found in
- CanadaUnited States
medium
medium: Only PBDB records it (3 records).Francemedium
medium: Only PBDB records it (15 records).Germanylow
low: Only one PBDB record.Lesotholow
low: Only one PBDB record.Moroccolow
low: Only one PBDB record.Namibialow
low: Only one PBDB record.United Kingdomlow
low: Only one PBDB record.low
low: Only one PBDB record.mixed
mixed: Levels differ between entries; each has its own.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: Union of all sources (ISO 3166).
- Rock formations
- McCoy BrookNavajo Sandstone
medium
medium: Only PBDB records it (3 records).Navajo-Nugget Sandstonemedium
medium: Only PBDB records it (5 records).Portland Formationmedium
medium: Only PBDB records it (4 records).Etjomedium
medium: Only PBDB records it (5 records).Grès supérieurs et Argilites barioléeslow
low: Only one PBDB record.Moltenolow
low: Only one PBDB record.Plattensandsteinlow
low: Only one PBDB record.Wingate Sandstonelow
low: Only one PBDB record.low
low: Only one PBDB record.mixed
mixed: Levels differ between entries; each has its own.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: Canonical names, automatic and editor-approved matches applied.
- Footprint family
- Otozoidae
medium
medium: Only PBDB gives this; nothing contradicts it.Sources
Given by: Paleobiology Database. How it was chosen: PBDB leads.
- Parent group
- Otozoidae
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
- Otozoum grandcombensis, Otozoum minus, Otozoum moodii
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.
- Type species: no source we use gives it yet.
- Order: 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.
- Held back: 2 fossil records left out: identified only tentatively (for example "cf.", "?" or the name in quotation marks).
- Resting on one source: 5 facts come from a single source with nothing against them (rated medium): name (PBDB); authority (PBDB); parent group (PBDB); family (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. Otozoum had gone at least 91.1 million years before Tyrannosaurus appears in the fossil record, a longer gap than the 66 million years between Tyrannosaurus and today.
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 Otozoum 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 22
Genera and other fossil types from the same rock units, from rocks of overlapping age, the most shared fossil sites first.
Named by Hitchcock 13
Genera whose naming authority includes the same surname. The authority has no initials, so different people who share a surname can appear together.
Found in United States 25
Other genera found in United States, 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
- Natural History Museum Data PortalCC0 1.0 · catalogued specimens
- 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