World’s first known butt-drag fossil trace was left by a rock hyrax in South Africa 126,000 years ago

By Charles Helm, Research Associate, African Centre for Coastal Palaeoscience, Nelson Mandela University
Lynne Quick, Senior Research Fellow, Nelson Mandela University

Rock hyraxes, known in southern Africa more often as “dassies”, are furry, thickset creatures with short legs and no discernible tails. They spend much of their time sunning themselves on rocky outcrops.

Another thing they sometimes do is drag their butts along the ground. Dog owners know that this behaviour can be a sign of parasitic infections; in hyraxes the reason seems to be less clear, but this action leaves distinctive traces in sandy areas.

Traces and tracks – ancient, fossilised…

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