Overview

The work so far undertaken by palaeontologists in the United Arab Emirates, has shown the Emirates to have - for its geographical size - the most diverse palaeontological heritage of any country in the Arabian Peninsula. Fossils can be found ranging in time from nearly 300 million years ago to 8 million years. In addition, modern sedimentological processes such as the development of sabkha and carbonate environments with their associated fauna and flora found along the Arabian Gulf and Indian Ocean coastlines of the United Arab Emirates are now being re-studied to provide an important example of a modern environment that, in turn, can be compared with a similar environment in the geological past. Such studies can be of importance to future hydrocarbon exploration in the United Arab Emirates.

Palaeontological studies initiated by government organisations in the United Arab Emirates, namely ADCO and the UAE Ministry for Higher Education and Scientific Research, now provide important information for international science and will be of direct benefit for the cultural heritage of the United Arab Emirates.