Dinosaur discovery in Tajikistan uncovers prehistoric secrets
In the north of Tajikistan, in the Sughd region, scientists have made a major discovery that has captured everyone's attention. A dinosaur bone, believed to be around 85 million years old, has been found.
12 November 2024 20:19
A group of scientists, including paleontologists from Russia and Tajikistan, also unearthed remains of smaller animals from the Cretaceous period, such as turtles, crocodiles, amphibians, fish, and lizards.
A major discovery
The excavation work was carried out in the village of Kansai from October 20 to 28 of this year. The research team included Russian paleontologists from Yekaterinburg, Saint Petersburg, and Moscow, as well as two scientists from Tajikistan.
Research is currently ongoing on the discovered dinosaur bone. Scientists have yet to determine which part of the body it originates from. "This will be clarified in the course of further research," said Umid Nabiev, one of the Tajik members of the expedition.
It is worth noting that this is not the first such find in Kansai. In the 1960s, a team led by renowned paleontologist Anatoly Rozhdestvensky discovered nearly an entire femur of a therizinosaur, a dinosaur from the coelurosaur group, and a series of smaller bones of other extinct animals. Meanwhile, in the 1980s, Russian paleontologist Lev Nesov found remains of mammals from the Cretaceous period in this region.
Research is ongoing
Scientists plan to continue excavations in May next year and explore new sites in Kansai. The area is being exploited for raw materials for cement production, so new canyons could interest paleontologists. Some of the bone remnants discovered have been provided to the Sughd Regional Historical and Cultural Museum, including the remains of a southern mammoth discovered in Tajikistan in 2013.
Umid Nabiev, one of the expedition participants, stands out as the only person in Tajikistan currently studying paleontology. He shared that last year, his university started collaborating with Russian scientists who were keen to teach the subject. This led to an opportunity for him to pursue studies at the Institute of Zoology and Parasitology of the National Academy of Sciences of Tajikistan, and he remains the only student to have selected this specialty so far.
