What is the reason for fish fossils appearing in the Himalayas? Many believe that a great flood brought fish fossils to this mountain range.
The Himalayas, which literally means “abode of snow” in Sanskrit, is also known as the “roof of the world.” But would you believe it if someone told you that they found a fish fossil in the Himalayas?
Fish fossil.
Although this may sound absurd and hard to believe, fish and other marine fossils have indeed been discovered in the Himalayas!
When mountaineers first found marine fossils on the Himalayas, speculation about the reasons behind this began to arise. Among all the theories, the most popular one is the “Great Flood.”
However, experts propose a different hypothesis. They argue that continental drift, which is also responsible for the creation of the majestic Himalayas, is the true reason why fish fossils are found in this mountain range.
The fish fossils in the Himalayas are the result of a geological event known as “continental drift.” This drift occurred approximately 225 million years ago when the world map looked very different – India was part of a supercontinent called “Gondwana.”
However, around 200 million years ago, the Indian tectonic plate began moving northward at a rate of 9 to 16 cm per year after separating from Gondwana.
About 50 million years ago, the landmass of India finally collided with the Eurasian continent after traveling a distance of approximately 6,400 km. The oceanic crust of the Indian tectonic plate and the Eurasian continent was continuously uplifted and accumulated, leading to the formation of the Himalayas.
Thus, it can be said that the Himalayas were formed from the collision of landmasses, primarily the ocean floor being uplifted. Naturally, the ocean floor is home to marine organisms. Therefore, during the prolonged collision, many fossilized organisms from the ocean floor were lifted up along with the peaks.
Some of the first fossils in the Himalayas were collected during the 1924 Everest expedition. Although the expedition was unsuccessful, George Mallory and Andrew Irvine, two of the climbers, lost their lives while attempting to conquer Everest. However, Noel Eward Odell, another member of the team, survived and returned with several fish fossil samples (limestone).
Many years later, Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, the first to reach the summit of Everest, also collected similar limestone samples. Limestone is a sedimentary rock formed from organic debris, such as fish, coral, bones, and shells… in warm water regions.
The fossils discovered by these climbers date back to the Ordovician period, which ended about 440 million years ago. This means that these fossils are even older than the first humans who walked the Earth about 2 million years ago!
