恐龙足迹化石作为“汗青的脚迹”，不停受到人们的器重。
日前，河北省自然资源厅发布古生物化石观察结果，颠末观察评价，2020年4月，河北地质观察职员在张家口宣化发现的大型恐龙足迹化石群，涉及面积约9100平米，共有恐龙足迹4300多个，开端确定这些足迹来自4种恐龙。
图源：新华网
More than 4,300 dinosaur footprints have been discovered in Zhangjiakou, North China's Hebei province, the most such markings found in one spot in the country, according to the Department of Natural Resources of Hebei, which recently disclosed related survey results.
这处恐龙足迹化石点位于宣化区的一处山坡上。在坚固的岩石上，分布着密密麻麻的恐龙足迹。这些足迹有的近似圆形，有的则是雷同兽爪的外形，生存得非常清楚。
图源：新华网
地质观察职员对现场的地质年代测定效果表现，这些恐龙足迹地点的岩石层距今有1.5亿年了。通过专家对陈迹的辨认和分类探查，确定共有恐龙足迹4属4种，并新发现恐龙足迹种属1例。
The footprints are located on fine, pebbly sandstone that dates back 150 million years and was covered by thick volcanic ash, providing good conditions for the preservation of the footprints.
据专家先容，这个层面它属于侏罗纪到白垩纪之交的期间。在一亿多年从前这里曾经有大片的丛林和水源，以是有大量的植食性和肉食性恐龙在这里聚集。
"It can be inferred that the footprints belong to an era around the Jurassic and the Cretaceous, when there were large forests and water sources here," said Sun Xiao, a chief engineer at the Regional Geological Survey Institute affiliated with Hebei Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources Exploration, quoted by Hebei Daily.
Jurassic n. 侏罗纪期间
Cretaceous n. 白垩纪期间
图源：央视消息截图
通过这些脚迹，科学家可以确定恐龙是怎样行走的，盘算它们的长度、重量和巨细，以致估计它们的行走速率。从现场足迹来推断，专家表现植食性恐龙体长可达15米以上，肉食性恐龙体长可达4到5米。
From the footprints, scientists can determine how dinosaurs walked, calculate their length, weight and size, and even estimate their walking speed.
一名工人在丈量在河北张家口发现的恐龙脚迹
这些齐备的恐龙足迹为我们相识恐龙的生存方式提供了出色的视角，对于研究古生物群落的关联性等科学题目具有极其紧张的代价。
"Dinosaur bones become fossils after their death, while dinosaur footprints are left from when they were alive, which provide wonderful insights into how dinosaurs lived. They can provide a lot of information about their behavior, as well as information on paleogeography and paleoenvironment. Therefore, dinosaur footprints play an irreplaceable role," said Li Jianjun, a researcher from the Beijing Museum of Natural History.
paleogeography n. 古地理学
paleoenvironment n. 古环境
paleo- 前缀，表现“古；旧”之义
记者：张余
编辑：左卓
练习生：黎咏欣
泉源：中国日报 新华网 央视消息
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