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A remarkable fossil discovery in North Dakota has given scientists something they have never had before: a sequence of footprints believed to have been left by an adult Tyrannosaurus rex.

For decades, paleontologists have studied T. rex bones and isolated footprints to understand the world’s most famous dinosaur. Now, researchers have discovered what appears to be the first known trackway made by an adult T. rex, providing a rare glimpse into how the giant predator actually moved across the landscape.

The discovery was made in the Hell Creek Formation of southwestern North Dakota and dates to approximately 66.5 million years ago, near the very end of the Cretaceous Period. The research was published in the Journal of Vertebrate Paleontology in September 2026.

A Rare Glimpse of a Walking T. rex

The fossilized trackway consists of four enormous three-toed footprints arranged in sequence. Together, the tracks extend approximately 23 feet (7 meters).

Each footprint is roughly 3 feet (1 meter) long, making them among the largest three-toed dinosaur tracks known from the area.

Researchers believe the tracks were made by an adult T. rex because of their enormous size, narrow toe impressions, their age and location, and the abundance of T. rex fossils found nearby.

While isolated tracks have previously been attributed to adult T. rex, scientists had not previously documented a sequence of tracks that could confidently be associated with an adult of the species.

That makes this discovery particularly important.

What the T. rex Footprints Reveal

Bones can tell scientists a tremendous amount about an extinct animal’s anatomy. But footprints provide something bones cannot: a record of movement and behavior.

The four footprints show two left-foot impressions and two right-foot impressions. The distance between successive footprints indicates a stride of approximately 13 feet (4 meters).

Based on the trackway measurements, researchers estimate that the dinosaur was moving at approximately 1.5 to 2 meters per second, or roughly 3.5 to 4.5 miles per hour.

In other words, this particular T. rex appears to have been walking rather than running.

That may sound ordinary, but capturing an actual moment in the life of an animal that disappeared roughly 66 million years ago is extraordinarily rare.

Why the North Dakota Discovery Is So Important

The Hell Creek Formation is one of the world’s most important fossil deposits for studying the final chapter of the dinosaur era.

The rocks preserve evidence of life from approximately 66 million years ago, just before the asteroid impact associated with the mass extinction that eliminated non-avian dinosaurs.

The newly discovered T. rex trackway was found approximately 33 meters below the Hell Creek/Fort Union Formation boundary. Scientists estimate its age at about 66.5 million years.

The discovery therefore captures a moment very close to the end of the dinosaur age.

A Colorado Teacher Helped Find the Tracks

One of the most interesting parts of the discovery is how the trackway was found.

The site was identified in 2025 by Kent Hups, a Colorado high school teacher and museum volunteer. Hups became involved in the discovery while exploring the North Dakota fossil-rich landscape.

His discovery eventually brought together researchers from the Denver Museum of Nature & Science and Liverpool John Moores University.

The story is a reminder that major scientific discoveries don’t always begin in a laboratory. Sometimes they begin with someone noticing something unusual in the field.

Scientists Used 3D Scanning Technology

The researchers didn’t simply photograph the footprints.

They used high-resolution 3D scanning technology to digitally document the individual tracks and the entire trackway.

The resulting digital models allowed scientists to examine the footprints in detail, measure their dimensions and analyze the spacing between them.

The researchers used an Artec Leo scanner, producing detailed three-dimensional models that can be studied digitally and used to create physical reproductions.

This technology is particularly valuable because fossil footprints can be fragile and difficult to preserve in the field.

Digital scans allow researchers to study the tracks without repeatedly handling the original fossils.

What Did T. rex Actually Look Like When It Walked?

The footprints don’t provide a complete picture of the dinosaur’s appearance, but they offer clues about its locomotion.

The trackway suggests a large, powerful theropod moving with a relatively measured stride.

Scientists estimate that the animal had a hip height of roughly 4 meters, although the researchers emphasize that the calculations are approximate because of the limited length and preservation quality of the trackway.

The footprints themselves aren’t perfectly preserved. Their surfaces have been heavily fractured, meaning that much of the fine anatomical detail has been lost.

Nevertheless, their size, shape and location make an adult T. rex the most likely trackmaker.

Why Footprints Can Be More Valuable Than Bones

Fossil bones tell scientists about anatomy.

Footprints can tell scientists about behavior.

A skeleton can reveal the size of an animal, the structure of its limbs and how its body was built. A trackway can reveal where an animal stepped, how far it moved between steps and approximately how quickly it was traveling.

That’s why a sequence of footprints can provide a unique snapshot of an extinct animal’s life.

As paleontologist Tyler Lyson of the Denver Museum of Nature & Science explained, bones provide extensive information about dinosaurs, but footprints capture a moment of behavior.

For T. rex, those behavioral snapshots are exceptionally rare.

Could More T. rex Footprints Be Found?

Possibly.

The researchers note that the newly discovered trackway is located on the edge of a steep formation, with substantial rock and sediment covering portions of the area.

That means additional footprints could potentially exist beneath the overlying material.

However, excavating more of the trackway could be difficult because of the geological conditions.

If additional tracks are eventually discovered, they could provide even more information about how adult T. rex moved.

The Tracks Are Expected to Be Preserved

Three of the footprints are expected to be recovered from the site and transported to the Denver Museum of Nature & Science for further study and preservation.

That will give scientists and the public an opportunity to examine physical examples of a discovery that documents an adult T. rex in motion.

The digital scans will also remain an important scientific resource for future research.

A Dinosaur Took Its Last Steps Millions of Years Ago

Perhaps the most remarkable aspect of the discovery is its timing.

The T. rex that created these tracks walked across what is now North Dakota approximately 66.5 million years ago.

Within a relatively short geological window, the asteroid impact that struck Earth at the end of the Cretaceous would bring the reign of non-avian dinosaurs to an end.

The footprints therefore preserve a tiny moment from one of the final chapters of dinosaur history.

For millions of years, the tracks remained hidden in the rocks.

Now scientists can finally follow those ancient steps.

The Bottom Line

The discovery of the first known adult T. rex trackway in North Dakota is an extraordinary addition to the fossil record.

Four enormous footprints, extending about 23 feet, provide evidence of an adult Tyrannosaurus rex walking across the landscape approximately 66.5 million years ago.

More than just footprints, the discovery represents a rare behavioral record of one of Earth’s most famous predators.

As technology continues to improve, discoveries like this demonstrate that scientists can still find new evidence about dinosaurs—even animals as extensively studied as T. rex.

The bones of T. rex tell us what the dinosaur was. These footprints help tell us what it did.