Southerham Grey Pit
Encyclopedia
Southerham Grey Pit is a 8.4 hectare (20.8 acre) geological Site of Special Scientific Interest
, located in East Sussex
, England
. The site was notified in 1990 under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
.
Southerham Grey Pit exposes nearly the entire Chalk Marl and the lower half of the
Grey Chalk (Cenomanian
) and is the only inland section of these beds in southern
England or northern France
. The section includes beds which are regionally absent on a
continent-wide scale and is of considerable importance to Cretaceous
stratigraphy
.
Southerham Grey Pit yields abundant and well preserved bivalves and
ammonites across the Lower-Middle Cenomanian boundary. These are absent
elsewhere in Britain and are very important for regional correlation. Southerham Grey
Pit is the single most important section in the Cenomanian Chalk Marl and Grey
Chalk in western Europe.
The Lewes
area has long been famous for the exceptional diversity of the fossil fish
found in its Chalk pits. The region has provided the most representative collection of
Chalk fish, and is only rivalled by Burham
in Kent
. Individual species from Lewes are
frequently represented by large numbers of specimens, many of which comprise
complete, articulated skeletons preserved without serious distortion. These have been
the subject of much scientific research. Large numbers of specimens from the Lewes
area have been described and figured, and it is the source of at least 27 type
specimens.
This quarry
is relatively recent, and it is therefore not the source quarry for the old
collections on which these descriptions of chalk fish are based. However it is the last
remaining source for fossil fish in this important area, yielding fish from both the
Chalk Marl and Grey Chalk.
Site of Special Scientific Interest
A Site of Special Scientific Interest is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom. SSSIs are the basic building block of site-based nature conservation legislation and most other legal nature/geological conservation designations in Great Britain are based upon...
, located in East Sussex
East Sussex
East Sussex is a county in South East England. It is bordered by the counties of Kent, Surrey and West Sussex, and to the south by the English Channel.-History:...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The site was notified in 1990 under the Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981
The Wildlife and Countryside Act 1981 is an Act of Parliament in the United Kingdom and was implemented to comply with the Directive 2009/147/EC on the conservation of wild birds...
.
Southerham Grey Pit exposes nearly the entire Chalk Marl and the lower half of the
Grey Chalk (Cenomanian
Cenomanian
The Cenomanian is, in the ICS' geological timescale the oldest or earliest age of the Late Cretaceous epoch or the lowest stage of the Upper Cretaceous series. An age is a unit of geochronology: it is a unit of time; the stage is a unit in the stratigraphic column deposited during the corresponding...
) and is the only inland section of these beds in southern
England or northern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
. The section includes beds which are regionally absent on a
continent-wide scale and is of considerable importance to Cretaceous
Cretaceous
The Cretaceous , derived from the Latin "creta" , usually abbreviated K for its German translation Kreide , is a geologic period and system from circa to million years ago. In the geologic timescale, the Cretaceous follows the Jurassic period and is followed by the Paleogene period of the...
stratigraphy
Stratigraphy
Stratigraphy, a branch of geology, studies rock layers and layering . It is primarily used in the study of sedimentary and layered volcanic rocks....
.
Southerham Grey Pit yields abundant and well preserved bivalves and
ammonites across the Lower-Middle Cenomanian boundary. These are absent
elsewhere in Britain and are very important for regional correlation. Southerham Grey
Pit is the single most important section in the Cenomanian Chalk Marl and Grey
Chalk in western Europe.
The Lewes
Lewes
Lewes is the county town of East Sussex, England and historically of all of Sussex. It is a civil parish and is the centre of the Lewes local government district. The settlement has a history as a bridging point and as a market town, and today as a communications hub and tourist-oriented town...
area has long been famous for the exceptional diversity of the fossil fish
found in its Chalk pits. The region has provided the most representative collection of
Chalk fish, and is only rivalled by Burham
Burham
Burham is a village and civil parish in the Tonbridge and Malling district ofKent, England. According to the 2001 census it had a population of 1,251. The village is near the Medway towns.The history of Burham can be traced to Roman times...
in Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
. Individual species from Lewes are
frequently represented by large numbers of specimens, many of which comprise
complete, articulated skeletons preserved without serious distortion. These have been
the subject of much scientific research. Large numbers of specimens from the Lewes
area have been described and figured, and it is the source of at least 27 type
specimens.
This quarry
Quarry
A quarry is a type of open-pit mine from which rock or minerals are extracted. Quarries are generally used for extracting building materials, such as dimension stone, construction aggregate, riprap, sand, and gravel. They are often collocated with concrete and asphalt plants due to the requirement...
is relatively recent, and it is therefore not the source quarry for the old
collections on which these descriptions of chalk fish are based. However it is the last
remaining source for fossil fish in this important area, yielding fish from both the
Chalk Marl and Grey Chalk.