First dinosaur remains from the Cenomanian-Turonian Nimar Sandstone (Bagh beds), district Dhar, Madhya Pradesh, India

Abstract

Sauropod remains are recorded for the first time from the lower and upper parts of the Late Cretaceous (Cenomanian-Turonian) Nimar. Sandstone representing fresh water and intertidal environments of deposition respectively. The Nimar sandstone is the lowermost member of the Bagh beds of district Dhar, Madhya Pradesh. The material includes limb elements and numerous fragmentary bones belonging at least to two individuals. The specimens are referred here to Sauropoda, but lower-level comparisons are not yet possible. The Bagh dinosaurs are the earliest Cretaceous dinosaurs known from India. The sauropod bones are found in two different settings within the Nimar sandstone: a fluvial and an intertidal palaeoenivornments.