Egypt to nominate fossil hotspot to UNESCO’s list
Egypt has prepared a file to nominate the Gebel Qatrani area, which houses fossils of half of all creatures from the beginning of creation until today, in Fayoum to UNESCO's World Heritage List.
The Egyptian Ministry of Environment has prepared a file to nominate the Gebel (Mountain) Qatrani area in Fayoum, 100 kilometers (62 miles) southwest of Cairo, for UNESCO's World Heritage List.
“This site dates back 35 million years. It houses fossils of half of all creatures from the beginning of creation until today, such as elephants, monkeys, birds, whales and plants,” said Mohammed Sameh Antar, director general Central Parks of Egypt, Nature Conservation Sector, Egyptian Environmental Affairs Agency and Ministry of Environment.
He told Al-Monitor that the 200-square-kilometer (77-square-mile) area documented the most significant interval in history since the dinosaurs disappeared 65 million years ago.
“Gebel Qatrani includes 14 living and extinct orders out of the globally known 28 orders,” said Antar, who is also director general of Central Protected Areas, National Focal point, UNESCO, Natural World Heritage Sites.
