What trackways can tell us about titanosaur foot anatomy

[Halichoeres]

Some exceptional trackways from the Nemegt show that the hind foot had claws that protruded only a little, and that the hand lacked claws but had highly textured scales. Those scales might have been specific to desert dwellers, but hard to say.

The feet, as reconstructed based on these trackways:


The article has more images, including photos of the tracks themselves.

Open access in Zoological Journal of the Linnean Society: https://academic.oup.com/zoolinnean/article/204/3/zlaf053/8205517

[crazy8wizard]

I'm interested in exploring more diverse depictions of sauropod scales.
The idea that these could be used for "scratch digging" is intriguing and it conjured the amusing mental image of a titanosaur digging a hole like a dog with its scratchy palm skin.

[Faelrin]

I wouldn't have expected something like the hindlimb footprint's integument (in regards to the claws). Very fascinating. The scale shape and pattern is also really interesting. I wonder how it compares to other sauropod trackways out there.

[Ajax88]

Seems strange to develop those massive pedal unguals just to bury them in fleshy toes!

[Halichoeres]

Seems strange to develop those massive pedal unguals just to bury them in fleshy toes!

The only thing I can think of is the torque on the claws during digging. If there's a lot of tendons and tough scales joining them at the base to the foot, they might be less likely to break?