Rice in dinosaur poop, shark teeth in rocks: Bagh beats Jurassic Park

China is the world’s biggest rice producer, followed by India. But which of them had rice first? It’s a question that has foxed scientists for decades. The answer might have been found in an unlikely place, though – the fossil trove of Bagh, about 135km west of Indore in Madhya Pradesh.Part of the Deccan Traps, this region lying north of the Narmada once had the largest population of dinosaurs. Some 65 million years ago, a dinosaur foraging here left behind grains of wild rice in the undigested remains of its meal. Scientists who studied the fecal fossils (coprolite) say they prove that wild rice existed in this region in the Late Cretaceous era (100.5-60 million years ago), and spread to Southeast Asia from here.“We can positively say wild rice was present in India 65 million years ago. Later on, when the Indian plate collided with the Asian plate, it dispersed to Southeast Asia,” said Dr Vandana Prasad, director of Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences (BSIP) in Lucknow.“We collected wild rice samples from all over the world: from South Africa, China, Indonesia, and compared them with the fossils. It was found that the wild rice was 65 million years old,” Prasad added.It might be the world’s “oldest rice”, but it is different from the domesticated rice (Oryza sativa) that we eat. The domesticated variety is barely 15,000 years old.Medium108405687 Answers Hidden In RocksRice is only one of the evolutionary mysteries that Bagh could help crack. “The area shows evolution like no other place, at least in India. It is undisturbed, yet accessible,” said Dr Satish C Tripathi, secretary of The Society of Earth Scientists.Experts have found fossils of carnivorous (Abelisaurus) and herbivorous (Sauropods) dinosaurs here. They all vanished in the Cretaceous-Paleogene (K-Pg) Extinction Event, which wiped out over 75% of life on Earth 66 million years ago. Lava filled the area, creating the Deccan Plateau. The sea invaded, bringing in rare marine animals like 12-15 feet long sharks. Their fossils have also been found here.“Bagh is the only area where you find various stages of evolution. In other places you may find dinosaur fossils, but in Bagh you find various strata of dinosaur fossils and a complete marine sequence,” said Tripathi.Medium108405688 That’s why efforts are on to get the coveted ‘Unesco Global Geopark’ tag for Bagh. Prasad, who visited Bagh recently with a group of geologists and paleontologists, said it is uniquely suited for the tag as it tells an extraordinary story of evolution through the Late Cretaceous era.Bagh has a large number of dinosaur nesting sites and wild grass remains have been found in the coprolites around them. “It will become an extraordinary laboratory for the world if it gets Unesco Global Geopark status,” Prasad said.Besides explaining the extinction of dinosaurs it could shed light on the effects of rising carbon dioxide levels in the atmosphere. Soon after the extinction event millions of years ago, the CO2 concentration was 6-8 times higher than now, the climate was extremely humid. Yet, life revived and thrived.“With the current global warming conditions, we are always trying to find analogues in the past. How did nature respond? How did plants and animals respond?” said Prasad.Medium108405689 Time For Global TagBagh always had its fossils. Locals tell stories of children mistaking dinosaur eggs for balls. “We heard about round stones from our elders. They were either used for worship or as grindstones at home. But now we know they are dinosaur eggs,” Guman Singh, a local resident, told TOI.MP Ecotourism Development Board CEO Dr Sameeta Rajora said, “Fossilised trees and basaltic columns are found lying on the roadside. People dig them out and discard them without knowing their value.”The area drew scientists’ attention in 2006 when amateur explorers led by a school physics teacher, Vishal Verma, found a perfectly preserved dinosaur egg here. Since then, hundreds of fossilised dinosaur eggs, bones and teeth have been discovered. In 2011, the MP forest department declared the 89.4-hectare Bagh area as a Dinosaur Fossil National Park, paving the way for conservation projects.Unesco has so far awarded 177 Geopark tags. If Bagh gets one, the local communities will have a role in preserving its forests with assistance from the ecotourism board.“Geopark principles also revolve around conserving the site, giving an awe-inspiring experience to visitors and connecting with local communities, giving them better employment opportunities through tourism and other allied activities,” Rajora said.