Ultrastructure and taxonomy of ostrich eggshells from Upper Palaeolithic sites of India

Abstract

This paper deals with the taxonomy and ultrastructure of isolated ostrich eggshell fragments from several Late-Pleistocene (Palaeolithic) sites reported by Kumar et al., (1988) and records the discovery of a new locality for these Struthio eggshell fragments near Anjar, Kachchh. The extensive occurrence of these eggshells in over 40 widespread localities in Peninsular India reopens the question of whether these ratite birds represent the last remnants of Struthio lineages known from the Siwalik or whether they were reintroduced into the Indian landmass from East Africa in the Late Pleistocene. This aspect involves precise taxonomic identification based on shell ultrastructure using Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM), a feature dealt with in the current year.