A free guide to dinosaur footprints on Penarth Beach has been created by RNLI Penarth.

Made with the support from local volunteers and researchers from the Natural History Museum, the guide includes interesting facts about Penarth's prehistoric footprints, as well as safety information on the best times to visit them.  

Dinosaur footprints were first found on Penarth Beach in 2009, but their identification was only confirmed over a decade later in late 2021.

Researchers from the Natural History Museum found that the footprints date from the Triassic period and were left by a dinosaur from the sauropod family. 

Laurie Pavelin, the chairperson of RNLI Penarth, said: "It's great to be able to celebrate this local attraction and the significance it has for our understanding of the prehistoric world, while at the same time making sure that people are able to enjoy this exciting piece of the past safely."

A special guide for young visitors includes an exciting children's competition. 

Professor Paul Barrett, a merit researcher at the Natural History Museum, described the significance of Penarth's dinosaur footprints. He said: "These types of tracks are not particularly common worldwide, so we believe this is an interesting addition to our knowledge of Triassic life in the UK.

"The record of Triassic dinosaurs in this country is fairly small, so anything we can find from the period adds to our picture of what was going on at that time." 

The new guides are available to pick up from the RNLI Penarth shop on Penarth Esplanade and shop volunteers are also on hand to advise about tides and the best times to visit.