Piles of animal dung reveal the location of an ancient Arabian oasis

2 years ago 299

By Jake Buehler

Two stone  hyraxes (Procavia capensis syriaca)

The piles of faeces made by stone hyraxes clasp clues to our ain past

Natalia Kuzmina / Alamy

Fossilised piles of faeces, called middens, person revealed that a godforsaken vale successful Yemen was erstwhile a tropical oasis, which may person lasted successful the adust portion due to the fact that of quality onshore absorption practices.

Today, Wadi Sana is simply a dry, rocky desert. We knew that betwixt 11,000 and 5000 years ago, the Arabian peninsula and Sahara godforsaken were wetter than they are now, and immoderate lake-bed deposits suggested that grasslands and trees whitethorn have grown elsewhere successful the interior …

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