World's horses have common ancestor in Gujarat
Author: Paul John
Publication: The Times of India
Date: December 11, 2015
URL: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Worlds-horses-have-common-ancestor-in-Gujarat/articleshow/50131255.cms
Just 40 km away from industrial town of Ankleshwar in south Gujarat lies the vast abandoned cavernous Vastan lignite mine spread over 1,500 hectares towards the edge of Cambay basin colloquially referred as Khambat.
It is here that a team of scientists extracted a treasure trove of over 200 teeth and bones of an animal which is the ancestor of all horse breeds including the finest -- Akhal-Teke, Appaloosa, Mushtang and even the Arab horses. Christened Cambaytherium thewissi - the ancestor is proudly a Khambati that lived 54.5 million years ago in the Eocene period of earth.
This was revealed by a nine-member team of researchers John Hopkins University, HNB Garhwal University, Rowan University, Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Ghent University, Panjab University and the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences.
Come January 2016, Ken neth Rose of Center of Johns Hopkins University and JS Rana of HNB Garhwal University will be back to dig for more clues on other mammals and rodents.
Scientists say Cambaytherium thewissi existed in the period when India was still an island separated from Madagascar and was headed swiftly towards collision with Asia. It took paleontologists and geologist 15 years to come across these clues, which also suggests that apart from modern day horses, even tapirs and rhinoceros originated from the same animal.
"Modern horses, rhinos and tapirs also belong to a biological order called Perissodactyla -- animals that had uneven number of toes on their hind feet and a special digestive system," says JS Rana of the Department of Geology, HNB Garhwal University.
"We had found Perissodactyla remains dated back to 55 million years ago, but their earlier evolution had remained a mystery. Cambaytherium thewissi is believed to be that missing link," says Rana.
Author: Paul John
Publication: The Times of India
Date: December 11, 2015
URL: http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/ahmedabad/Worlds-horses-have-common-ancestor-in-Gujarat/articleshow/50131255.cms
Just 40 km away from industrial town of Ankleshwar in south Gujarat lies the vast abandoned cavernous Vastan lignite mine spread over 1,500 hectares towards the edge of Cambay basin colloquially referred as Khambat.
It is here that a team of scientists extracted a treasure trove of over 200 teeth and bones of an animal which is the ancestor of all horse breeds including the finest -- Akhal-Teke, Appaloosa, Mushtang and even the Arab horses. Christened Cambaytherium thewissi - the ancestor is proudly a Khambati that lived 54.5 million years ago in the Eocene period of earth.
This was revealed by a nine-member team of researchers John Hopkins University, HNB Garhwal University, Rowan University, Wadia Institute of Himalayan Geology, Ghent University, Panjab University and the Royal Belgian Institute of Natural Sciences.
Come January 2016, Ken neth Rose of Center of Johns Hopkins University and JS Rana of HNB Garhwal University will be back to dig for more clues on other mammals and rodents.
Scientists say Cambaytherium thewissi existed in the period when India was still an island separated from Madagascar and was headed swiftly towards collision with Asia. It took paleontologists and geologist 15 years to come across these clues, which also suggests that apart from modern day horses, even tapirs and rhinoceros originated from the same animal.
"Modern horses, rhinos and tapirs also belong to a biological order called Perissodactyla -- animals that had uneven number of toes on their hind feet and a special digestive system," says JS Rana of the Department of Geology, HNB Garhwal University.
"We had found Perissodactyla remains dated back to 55 million years ago, but their earlier evolution had remained a mystery. Cambaytherium thewissi is believed to be that missing link," says Rana.
No comments:
Post a Comment