New Delhi, Nov. 27 -- Scientists have uncovered a 37,000-year-old bamboo fossil in Manipur, revealing that thorny bamboo species were growing in Asia even during the Ice Age.
The discovery was made in the silt-filled banks of the Chirang River in Imphal Valley and is being described as one of the rarest finds in Asian botanical research.
A team from the Birbal Sahni Institute of Palaeosciences (BSIP) spotted the fossil during a field visit. What immediately caught their eye was unusual marks on the stem. Later, detailed laboratory tests confirmed these were thorn scars, a feature almost impossible to find in bamboo fossils because the plant normally decomposes quickly and leaves little behind.
The fossil has been named Chimonobambusa man...