40 years ago, a young student published a scientific paper uncovering dinosaur fossils on the Isle of Skye. Since then, numerous discoveries have been made, including a “dinosaur disco” of footprints, a bone from a T-rex ancestor, and winged reptile fossils called pterosaurs. The first ever dinosaur fossil on Skye was found by Julian Andrews, a student on a field trip to Skye’s north coast in 1982. Although not seeking dinosaurs initially, he stumbled upon a dinosaur footprint while examining the island’s ancient Middle Jurassic sedimentary rocks. This significant discovery was kept a secret until 1983, and then proceeded for analysis. More discoveries followed, including a bone find in Heast 10 years later, and a package containing a missing bone part sent anonymously in the mail to Dr. Neil Clark, the curator of palaeontology at The Hunterian. Other discoveries include footprints found at Staffin in 2002, and a pterosaur fossil found in 2017. These fossils are estimated to be from the Middle Jurassic period, approximately 162-175 million years ago. Dugald Ross, who set up a fossil museum in Staffin in 1976, expressed pride in Skye’s importance in understanding life during the Middle Jurassic period due to its scarcity worldwide. Similarly, Cathie and Paul Booth, who made important discoveries in 2002, emphasized the global attention and interest in Skye’s fossils from media, radio, and TV outlets.
