Importance of dinosaur footprint discoveries in Kerman Province
Mohammad Eslami, the head of the Cultural Heritage, Handicrafts, and Tourism Organization of Zarand, a city in Kerman Province, recently visited the newly discovered dinosaur footprints in Dasht-e Khak Village, accompanied by the heads of universities in Zarand.
During this visit, he articulated that the primary purpose was to assess the significance of this discovery in relation to tourism and the protection of natural heritage. Eslami emphasized the potential of this discovery to attract tourists, noting that these dinosaur footprints are not only valuable historical and scientific artifacts but could also become a unique tourist attraction.
He added that the existence of such evidence of dinosaurs could promote scientific and specialized tourism, providing an opportunity for a better understanding of geological and environmental history. Eslami indicated that necessary measures for the protection of this footprint, as well as the creation of suitable conditions for its tourism development, would commence soon, ISNA wrote.
Samin Mirzaei, the head of the Islamic Azad University of Zarand, stressed the importance of education and research in paleontology. She mentioned that this discovery could offer more opportunities for students and researchers to conduct studies and will be effective in fostering educational programs in this field.
Local officials and stakeholders were also present during the visit, engaging in discussions about planning educational and scientific tours in the region. They specifically emphasized the need to create suitable infrastructure to facilitate visits from tourists and scientific experts.
This valuable discovery, beyond its scientific aspects, is regarded as an opportunity for sustainable tourism development in Zarand, which could contribute significantly to job creation and economic growth in the region.
Dinosaur exploration operations took place in late summer 2002, when a joint Iranian and Brazilian team identified skeletal remains of dinosaurs, including a carnivorous theropod tooth and pieces of unidentified bones, in the Darreh-ye Neyzar area, located in the village of Deh Alireza in northern Zarand, Kerman.
Additionally, an herbivorous dinosaur footprint, angled and located on a sloping wall, was uncovered in recent excavations. Part of this dinosaur’s footprint, which lived approximately 180 million years ago during the Jurassic period, has been lost due to neglect.
These significant discoveries have confirmed that both herbivorous and carnivorous dinosaurs coexisted in Iran.