New dinosaur tracksites from the Middle-?Late Jurassic of Msemrir (Central High Atlas, Morocco)

In the Atlas System of Morocco, Jurassic and Cretaceous formations are well represented by continental deposits, known as red beds, famous for their abundance of vertebrate and invertebrate body and trace fossils. The Msemrir region represents one of the synclines of the Central High Atlas where these red beds outcrop. Recent research in this area has led to the discovery of new ichnological sites in the upper part of the Tilougguit Formation (Late Bajocian-Early Bathonian) and the Guettioua Formation (Bathonian–?Callovian – Late Jurassic). These ichnosites are dominated by dinosaur tracks, mainly from theropods and by tracks of a quadrupedal dinosaur, possibly a stegosaur or a sauropod, often associated with invertebrate trace fossils. Theropod tracks and trackways include morphotypes similar to the ichnogenera Changpeipus, Carmelopodus, Kayentapus, and Grallatoridae indet. These new ichnoassemblages are documented and described here in detail for the first time. Furthermore, they give insight into Middle-? Late Jurassic dinosaur communities and their environment, while opening up hopeful perspectives for further exploration and discoveries in the Msemrir region.