Hiker discovers 280-million-year-old fossils predating dinosaurs in Alps

A chance discovery by a hiker in the Italian Alps has led scientists to the remains of an entire prehistoric ecosystem, previously hidden under layers of ice and snow.

The find, believed to date back to the Permian period, has revealed an array of well-preserved footprints belonging to ancient reptiles, amphibians, and insects.

This extraordinary discovery was made possible by the melting snow and ice, a direct effect of the climate crisis.

Ancient tracks in the Alps The discovery was made in the Valtellina Orobie mountain range in northern Italy. Claudia Steffensen, from Lovero village, was hiking with her husband in the Ambria valley near the Swiss border when she spotted unusual designs on a rock.

"It was a very hot day last summer, and we wanted to escape the heat, so we went to the mountains," Steffensen recounted to The Guardian. "On our way back down, we had to walk very carefully along the path. My husband was in front of me, looking straight ahead, while I was looking towards my feet. I put my foot on a rock, which struck me as odd as it seemed more like a slab of cement. I then noticed these strange circular designs with wavy lines. I took a closer look and realised they were footprints."

Steffensen captured an image of the rock and sent it to her friend, Elio Della Ferrera, a nature photographer, who forwarded it to Cristiano Dal Sasso, a paleontologist at the Museum of Natural History in Milan. The photograph sparked widespread interest among experts, leading to further investigation.

Traces of prehistoric life revealed Scientists soon determined that the footprints, discovered 5,577 feet (1,700 meters) above sea level, belonged to a prehistoric reptile. This reptile roamed the area around 280 million years ago, long before the age of the dinosaurs .

Further explorations of the Valtellina Orobie nature park, up to 9,843 feet (3,000 meters) high, uncovered hundreds of fossilized footprints from animals like amphibians, reptiles, and insects. Many of the prints were aligned to form "tracks," suggesting they may have been left by five or more species.

In a statement, Dal Sasso explained , "Dinosaurs did not yet exist, but the authors of the largest footprints must still have been of a considerable size – up to 2-3 meters long (6.5-9.8 feet)." Lorenzo Marchetti, a trace fossil specialist from the Museum of Natural History in Berlin, was equally impressed by the level of detail preserved in the footprints.

"The preservation of the footprints was such that they revealed impressive details, such as the imprints of fingernails and the belly skin of some animals," Marchetti noted.

The ancient ecosystem also held fossilized plant fragments, seeds, and raindrop imprints, capturing life in the Permian period. This era, marked by intense volcanic activity, ended in Earth's largest mass extinction due to a sharp temperature rise, paving the way for dinosaurs millions of years later.

Climate change uncovers hidden fossils The recent melting of ice in the Alps has uncovered multiple traces of prehistoric life, exposing areas of rock that would otherwise remain hidden. One of these traces includes a set of footprints from a crocodile-like reptile discovered at an altitude of 7,218 feet (2,200 meters) in Altopiano della Gardetta, in the Piedmont region.

Doriano Codega, president of the Valtellina Orobie nature park, highlighted how climate change played a key role in this find. "The discovery in the Ambria valley is also an effect of climate change," he said.

"The exceptional thing was the altitude – these relics were found at very high levels and were very well preserved. This is an area subjected to landslides, so there were also rock detachments that brought to light these fossils. This is a very important paleontological discovery."

Some of the discovered fossils, now nicknamed "Rock Zero," were recently brought to Milan for display at the Natural History Museum.

Meanwhile, scientific research on-site is expected to continue, offering further insight into this unique ecosystem and the ancient creatures that inhabited it.