Kasauli – A remarkable 20-million-year-old fossil stem has been unearthed near Koti railway station on the Kalka-Shimla railway track, shedding fresh light on the evolution of flowering plants and the ancient ecosystems of the early Miocene epoch. This unprecedented discovery, made in the Solan district of Himachal Pradesh, provides crucial evidence for understanding the diversification of angiosperms within the famed Kasauli Formation.
The fossil was identified by a team of paleontologists and geologists, marking the first discovery of its kind from the Koti railway station area. Known for its rich collection of plant fossils, the Kasauli Formation has intrigued scientists since 1864, when Medlicott first discovered fossils from the region. Since then, Kasauli has remained a focal point for debates about the paleoenvironment and biological evolution of the Indian subcontinent.
Dr. Ritesh Arya, a renowned scientist and fossil enthusiast from Kasauli, has played an important role in this discovery. Having collected fossils from Kasauli, Jagjit Nagar, Barog, and Kumarhatti since 1987, Dr. Arya has amassed an impressive collection of fossilized trees, flowers, seeds, fruits, insect wings, vertebrates, and leaves showing equatorial affinities. The recently recovered fossil stem, found near Koti railway station, adds another significant piece to the puzzle of the region’s ancient flora.
“This is an exciting and unprecedented discovery,” said Dr. Jagmohan Singh, the lead paleontologist of the project. Dr. Arya emphasized that the morphology of the fossil stem, with its distinctive branching pattern and structural features, suggests a strong evolutionary link with early angiosperms. “It provides us with a rare glimpse of the evolution of flowering plants in the region, which was once part of a vast ecosystem surrounded by the Tethys Ocean, separating India from Gondwana and Tibet from Laurasia,” Dr. Arya explained.
To further investigate, the team plans to collaborate with scientists from the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences for microscopic specimen analysis. This study aims to reveal the fossil’s vascular tissues and cellular arrangement, which appear to resemble those of extant basal angiosperms. Such findings could indicate that significant evolutionary innovations in flowering plants were already taking place in this region around 20 million years ago.
This discovery holds far-reaching implications for reconstructing the palaeoclimate and palaeoecology of the Himalayan foreland basin. As researchers delve deeper into the fossil’s structure, it may offer critical insights into the ancient environments that shaped the biodiversity of the Indian subcontinent.
