Major Dinosaur Fossil Discovery in Northern India
In a groundbreaking paleontological find, researchers have excavated what appears to be a Triceratops fossil along the banks of the Sahansara River in Uttar Pradesh's Saharanpur district. The discovery was announced by the Natural History and Conservation Centre, marking a significant addition to India's fossil record.
What Researchers Found
According to Mohammad Umar Saif, founder of the Natural History and Conservation Centre in Saharanpur, the recently unearthed fossil represents part of the dinosaur's nasal structure. The fossil is believed to be approximately 35-40 million years old and has been identified as the nasal horn of a Triceratops.
"While we cannot definitively say that it belongs to a Triceratops, it closely resembles other Triceratops fossils found around the world," Saif told PTI. "Its morphology, shape and size are very similar to known Triceratops specimens."
Significance of the Discovery
The Triceratops fossil discovery holds immense scientific importance for several reasons. Triceratops dinosaurs typically lived during the Late Cretaceous period, between 100.5 million and 66 million years ago. What makes this particular specimen remarkable is its exceptional state of preservation.
"The fossil is exceptionally well-preserved as it has completely transformed into sandstone due to heavy mineralisation," Saif explained. This transformation occurred because the fossil remained buried in the foothills of the Himalayas for millions of years, creating ideal conditions for preservation.
This isn't the first significant fossil find from the Saharanpur region. Several other fossils dating back millions of years have been excavated from the area in recent years, making it a hotspot for paleontological research and drawing considerable interest from the scientific community.
The discovery provides valuable insights into the prehistoric life that once thrived in what is now northern India and contributes to our understanding of dinosaur distribution and evolution across the Indian subcontinent.
